


Come Together

by aquariuslover



Series: Expectations! [9]
Category: DBSK | Tohoshinki | TVfXQ | TVXQ, Infinite (Band), Star Trek, Super Junior
Genre: Eunhyuk is Always Willing, Jaejoong is shifting...aka in HEAT, Sucks to be Yunho, Welcome Kim SungGyu
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-05
Updated: 2018-05-09
Packaged: 2019-05-02 09:41:33
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 37,853
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14541942
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/aquariuslover/pseuds/aquariuslover
Summary: The Expectation’s crew is busy instructing the Rebellion on how to care for the newly confiscated ships, it has handed over to them. While at the same time Captain Yunho struggles to deal with a shifting Jaejoong, and an erratic Changmin. Kyuhyun’s recovery takes a surprising turn. Family jewels are in jeopardy. Donghae wants to throw a party. Siwon has an interesting offer for Sungmin. Eunhyuk finds himself in Yoochun’s bed once again. Junsu is not amused.





	1. Shifting

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks Tahoeturquoise for the beta!
> 
> Kudos are loved!!!!

“I think we should throw a party.”  
  
Eunhyuk, Sungmin, Junsu and Siwon, who were sitting in the mess hall having a late dinner together, turned to look at Donghae after his sudden announcement.  
  
“A party?” Eunhyuk, who was sitting beside him, asked, confused.  
  
Donghae nodded his head. “Yeah, I think it’s the perfect time.”  
  
“Really? Are you sure? Kyuhyun hasn’t been back long,” Sungmin reminded Donghae from across the table as he set his spoon down. “I highly doubt he feels like partying.”  
  
“And Changmin is crazy,” Junsu reminded everybody from Eunhyuk’s other side.  
  
“Changmin isn’t crazy,” Eunhyuk protested. “It was just a sensitive subject.”  
  
“What subject?” Donghae asked, immediately curious.  
  
Junsu frowned and moved his rice around on his plate, grumbling, “Eunhyuk made me-”  
  
“I didn’t make you do anything! You lost the bet fair and square,” Eunhyuk interrupted, defending his actions.  
  
“A bet?” Siwon asked, his own curiosity rising.  
  
Junsu, who was exhausted after instructing rebel pilots on proper flying techniques since 5am, sighed and confessed, “We were really curious…about whether he was a hermaphrodite now.”  
  
“You didn’t,” Sungmin groaned, shaking his head.  
  
“We did,” Junsu admitted. “I lost the bet, so I had to ask him…if he had any feminine parts now.”  
  
“What did he say?” Donghae asked, eager to know. Changmin’s gender status was a big topic aboard the ship, and everybody wanted to know if he was half-female now.  
  
Eunhyuk broke out in laughter and answered for Junsu, “He said he was going to take his necklace off and fry Junsu’s brains.”  
  
“Melt…he said melt my brains!” Junsu exclaimed, correcting Eunhyuk. “It isn’t funny either, because he could do it. He already gave me brain damage!”  
  
“Heechul fixed that,” Sungmin told Junsu as he unconsciously reached up and rubbed his own forehead, remembering all too well what had happened when they had first encountered Changmin in his Joong form.  
  
“Are you sure he fixed it? I can’t believe anybody would be stupid enough to ask him that. What if he did take it off?” Donghae asked, still surprised that Junsu had the guts to ask what everybody else had been wondering.  
  
“He can’t take the necklace off, as long as somebody else places it around his neck. You all know this; this is why there is a ship wide order not to remove it,” Sungmin reminded them. “Changmin is completely harmless.”  
  
“Then why is security taking turns guarding him?” Eunhyuk asked the security chief sitting across from him.  
  
“Because he is still Changmin…he’s still smarter than all of us put together, and he isn’t exactly thinking rationally,” Sungmin informed his old friend. “What if he decided he wanted to take over the ship? The guards are just making sure he doesn’t do anything…reckless.”  
  
“It must suck, having to watch him,” Donghae told Siwon.  
  
“I have yet to have the experience,” Siwon, who sat beside Sungmin, answered.  
  
“Aren’t you lucky, you? Must pay to have friends in high places,” Eunhyuk told him, with his eyes glancing back and forth between Siwon and Sungmin suspiciously. Eunhyuk was extremely curious about the two of them. They were rarely apart these days.  
  
Siwon smiled at Eunhyuk, and replied, “Indeed.”  
  
“It’s not favoritism,” Sungmin protested suddenly. “I’m just letting the younger cadets do something for once. Jaejoong does the real watching.”  
  
“Yeah, Jaejoong dragged Changmin away from me after Changmin threatened to melt my brains,” Junsu quickly added. “I know things are tense between him and the captain, but I’m glad he’s on the ship.”  
  
“This is why we need to have a party,” Donghae explained, remembering the important topic he had brought up.  
  
“You lost me,” Junsu told Donghae.  
  
“There is too much tension on this ship. I remember a while back, after a most unfortunate accident on an away mission where I was-”  
  
“Turned into a girl?” Eunhyuk interrupted, finishing for Donghae.  
  
“Yes, that unfortunate accident,” Donghae agreed, wincing at the still-painful memory. “Jae was saying how he would like to have a Halloween Party, and since it is that time of year on Earth, I think it would be a great time to have one.”  
  
“Halloween Party? Why were you talking to Jaejoong about Halloween?” Sungmin asked, lost. He couldn’t imagine Jaejoong and Donghae chit-chatting for some reason.  
  
“Well, actually we were talking with Ryeowook, and the subject of Halloween came up,” Donghae admitted.  
  
Eunhyuk looked at Sungmin knowingly and then asked Donghae, “So, were they talking about the historic Cho first kiss?”  
  
“You know about it?” Donghae asked his friend, surprised.  
  
“We were there,” Sungmin informed him.  
  
“Maybe a Halloween Party would be a nice idea,” Siwon said suddenly. “Perhaps, it would be a chance for people to look back and reflect on more positive memories.”  
  
“Exactly!” Donghae shouted, glad that somebody saw the sense in his plan.  
  
  
************************  
  
  
A foot pressed into Yunho’s back and then the demanding voice of Changmin could be heard saying, “It is time for you to awaken!”  
  
Yunho, who refused to open his eyes or completely wake up, reached out his arm swatting at his annoying son. “No…sleep…longer.”  
  
“Yunho!” Changmin continued, “I need to go to sickbay.”  
  
“Grrph!” Yunho growled as he sat up in bed and looked at his perfectly healthy, blue-eyed son, who was sitting on the bed beside him. “Changmin, it’s barely 6am. I get to sleep for thirty more minutes.”  
  
Changmin sighed and told his poor, delusional father, “I’m not going to let you sleep for thirty more minutes, so just give in and take me to sickbay.”  
  
Yunho frowned, realizing the painful truth of Changmin’s words. Yunho thought about threatening to throw Changmin in the brig, but threats had never been effective on the old version of Changmin, and this new Joong version was no different. “Why do you have to go to sickbay?”  
  
Changmin smiled, knowing he had already won, and explained, “Shindong gets to try out his new legs today, and I want to see him before my torture begins. Sulli and I promised to help him with ambulation.”  
  
“Changmin, you are not being tortured. You are learning to control your mind,” Yunho clarified as he slid out of bed.  
  
Changmin who was already dressed in standard gray civilian clothing, instead of his blue uniform, complained, “That’s easy for you to say. You get to avoid mom all day. I, on the other hand, have to spend all day with him.”  
  
“I am not avoiding Jaejoong.”  
  
“Yes, you are.”  
  
Yunho exhaled and got up out of bed, and relented. “Yes, perhaps we are spending less time together than we normally would, but it’s for a good reason.”  
  
“So I can learn to control my mental abilities before I zap out of existence.”  
  
Yunho, who had been about to step into the sonic shower, stopped in his tracks and turned to face his son and said, “You don’t know that. You didn’t even know that before. Nobody knows what will happen to you once you’re conceived.”  
  
Changmin, who was sitting on the bed watching Yunho, nodded his head in agreement and added, “You are correct. I do not know for sure. My childhood memories only go back to after Jaejoong suppressed all my Joong abilities. I only remember a Guardian, Jaejoong, and SooYoung. I have no proof that I was zapped out of existence by my own conception.”  
  
Yunho couldn’t fight the smile that had formed on his face at Changmin’s words. He sounded like his old self. They had been in orbit around the planet Altanguerel for six days now. The planet had a large rebellion outpost on it, but the rest of it was completely inhabited. The race that had once lived on the planet had been mysteriously wiped out hundreds of years ago. The rebels insisted the planet was safe, and all scans of the planet by the Expectations substantiated their claims.  
  
While most of Yunho’s crew was busy teaching the Rebellion to fly and how to properly care for the newly confiscated ships that the Expectations was handing over to them, Jaejoong and Changmin had continents to themselves. Jaejoong was teaching Changmin to control his new mental abilities. Changmin was still emotional, but his control over his emotions was growing daily. Changmin was still forced to wear the necklace while on the ship, but as soon as he was alone with Jaejoong, the necklace came off.  
  
Yunho looked away from Changmin and stared at the wall that separated the bedroom from the living area. Jaejoong still insisted on sleeping on the couch, which was completely rational, since Changmin refused to sleep with him, and Jaejoong refused to sleep with Yunho. Yunho had kept himself very busy for the past week, avoiding Jaejoong as much as possible, and Jaejoong had done the same. When they were forced to come together, Yunho could do no right. Jaejoong had not been lying when he had described this stage of the shifting process.  
  
“Yunho, perhaps you should call security to take me to sickbay?” Changmin asked after moments passed with Yunho just standing and staring at the wall that separated him from Jaejoong.  
  
Yunho turned to face Changmin once again and admitted, “That might be for the best. I should really go inspect the hanger bay and check on their progress.”  
  
***************  
  
“Wake up, Sleepy,” the warm voice of Ryeowook said, waking Kyuhyun from a dreamless sleep.  
  
Kyuhyun stretched out his arms and yawned as the smell of his favorite coffee engulfed his senses. “Just five minutes longer.”  
  
Ryeowook laughed and set the coffee down on the bedside table. “Whatever you want, but I am heading to sickbay. I will be back in a couple hours, and I’ll bring you breakfast then.”  
  
Kyuhyun’s eyes opened to find his husband standing at the bedside, smiling down at him, and already dressed. “Isn’t it a little early? What time is it?”  
  
“It is a little early, but Shindong gets to try out his new legs today. I know he’s excited, and I don’t want to make him wait.”  
  
Kyuhyun sat up immediately. “They are ready?”  
  
“Yes, they are fully developed. I just wanted to make sure all the nerve connections were working properly before setting him loose on them.”  
  
“Why, Dr. Cho, you are just amazing,” Kyuhyun said as he slid out of bed, wearing soft, baby blue pajamas.  
  
“This I know,” Ryeowook replied as he watched Kyuhyun head into their tiny bathroom that held their sonic shower. “Why are you getting up?”  
  
“You can’t expect me to just lie around in bed all day and let you wait on me hand and foot?” Kyuhyun answered as he stripped off and stepped into the sonic shower.  
  
“Yes, I do. I expect exactly that.”  
  
“I’m going to have to go out and face people sometime,” Kyuhyun said from inside the shower.  
  
“It doesn’t have to be today.”  
  
“You just don’t want to share me,” Kyuhyun teased, stepping out of the sonic shower after it quickly cleaned him.  
  
“You are right. I don’t want to share you, so you should stay here and indulge my selfishness,” Ryeowook told Kyuhyun, unable to hide the worry in his voice as he watched a naked Kyuhyun walk to the dressing chamber.  
  
Kyuhyun stepped into the dressing chamber and worked the controls. “It’s not like I’m resuming my duties. I just want to go to sickbay and see Shindong. Doctor Cho, if you weren’t my overprotective husband, you wouldn’t have a problem with this.”  
  
“No,” Ryeowook confessed. “I know you need to see him.” Shindong and Kyuhyun had survived a horrifying experience together, and Ryeowook knew it was only natural for his husband to need to see Shindong as the other man regained some of what was lost to him.  
  
Kyuhyun stepped out of the dressing chamber in the standard gray civilian clothing, and smiled at his pouting husband. “You know, I can handle this.”  
  
“I do know that.”  
  
Kyuhyun stepped up closer to Ryeowook and reached for his hand. “You also know I am going to want to resume my-”  
  
“There is no way I am releasing you back to duty, so don’t even start with me,” Ryeowook interrupted, knowing exactly where Kyuhyun was heading.  
  
“Ryeowook, I know it’s too soon, but I’m not nearly as fragile as you like to imagine. I am going to be fine,” Kyuhyun insisted as Ryeowook led him out of the bedroom.  
  
“I get to say when you are fine, and you are not fine,” Ryeowook grumbled as he came to a halt at the doorway. Ryeowook was hesitant for Kyuhyun to leave the safety of their quarters. Only a few aboard the ship knew for certain what Kyuhyun had been through, but he knew the rest of the ship had been speculating.  
  
Kyuhyun stared down at his husband, who had paused at the doorway. “And dare I ask when you will allow me to return to duty?”  
  
“In five more weeks…maybe.”  
  
“Five weeks!” Kyuhyun exclaimed. “I think somebody is misusing their medical authority!”  
  
“You know the captain will totally support me in this,” Ryeowook quickly said in his defense.  
  
“The captain needs me! You can’t manipulate his guilt like that. He has already lost Changmin, he can’t do without the both of us for that long,” Kyuhyun complained.  
  
Ryeowook, who was still staring at the closed door, retorted back at his husband, “I am not manipulating his guilt. I have the final say and I think it will be at least five weeks before you are ready to resume your duties.”  
  
“But he needs-”  
  
“He has Commander Yoochun and Sungmin, and everybody else on this ship. He wouldn’t want you back before you are ready,” Ryeowook insisted.  
  
Kyuhyun looked down at Ryeowook disapprovingly. “We are going to have to agree to disagree on this. I only ask that you keep an open mind and not insist on setting some arbitrary date for when I will be recovered enough to assume my duties.”  
  
Ryeowook winced, not missing Kyuhyun’s double meaning. “Agreed….we will wait and see. I will keep an open mind.”  
  
“Good,” Kyuhyun said, letting out a sigh of relief. “Now are we going to stand here all day or are we going to go to sickbay?”  
  
“Going to sickbay,” Ryeowook answered and stepped closer to the door causing it to open. “You know I really regret making us-”  
  
“I know you do,” Kyuhyun interrupted before Ryeowook could finish. “It doesn’t matter now.”  
  
“It does matter,” Ryeowook insisted as they strolled toward sickbay, hand in hand. “Sometimes I…I am just too stubborn.”  
  
“I like to refer to it as pigheaded.”  
  
“Hey! Is this a crack about my past weight problem?” Ryeowook proclaimed, trying to sound offended to lighten the mood.  
  
“No, it’s just the perfect word for you.”  
  
“I have some words for you, but I will refrain from saying them.”  
  
“Handsome, smart, graceful, attractive, alluring, brave, clever, and charming - the list just goes on and on,” Kyuhyun replied, happy to supply Ryeowook with a list of words describing himself.  
  
Ryeowook snorted. “Aren’t I a lucky man?”  
  
“Yes, you are. Not everybody can be married to such a prize,” Kyuhyun told his husband as they reached sickbay.  
  
“No, not everybody,” Ryeowook agreed, indulging Kyuhyun’s ego for once, as they walked into the main section of sickbay.  
  
“Kyuhyun!” Changmin, who was standing with Sulli at Shindong’s bedside, exclaimed upon seeing the commander, who had been a recluse in his cabin since returning to the ship.  
  
“Changmin,” Kyuhyun said cautiously as he greeted the Joong version of Changmin who was all smiles at seeing him. Kyuhyun had not seen Sulli since her return, but he was well briefed on what had occurred on the ship while he was missing.  
  
Changmin rushed toward Kyuhyun, but came to an abrupt halt before engulfing Kyuhyun in a hug. “It’s so good to see you! I missed you so much! I need to hug you, but I can’t hug you. Mom said not to,” Changmin told Kyuhyun then swiftly turned around, spread out his arms, and shouted, “Sulli!”  
  
“Yes?” the young woman asked perplexed.  
  
“I have to hug you instead,” Changmin explained as he rushed toward her and embraced her tightly, lifting her off the floor and twirling her in circles.  
  
“He’s nuttier than a fruit cake if you haven’t figured that out yet,” Shindong told Kyuhyun, but he was unable to hide his smile as he sat on his sickbay bed, dangling his newly grown legs off the side. “But I prefer him like this.”  
  
“I see,” Kyuhyun said, unable to stop from laughing, as he watched Changmin continue to twirl Sulli in circles.  
  
“Changmin, put Sulli down!” Ryeowook ordered, shaking his head disapproving. “You are going to make her dizzy!”  
  
Changmin stopped instantly, letting Sulli go. Sulli instantly swayed on her feet, and Changmin quickly caught her before she fell to the floor. “Just a little bit dizzy,” Sulli replied as she reached up and touched her temple.  
  
“I’m sorry,” Changmin apologized, but his bright smile stayed intact.  
  
“It’s okay,” Sulli told him as she stepped away from him. “I know how excited you are to see Commander Cho.”  
  
“Yes, I am! He is my favorite person. He saved me, but you saved me, too. You two are my favorite people.”  
  
“Yunho will be thrilled,” Ryeowook said, reminding Changmin of an important exclusion, as he moved closer to Shindong to inspect his patient.  
  
Changmin quickly corrected himself, “Of course Yunho is my most favorite person, and if I’m being completely logical, somebody else helped…but I’m not going to be logical today, so never mind that!”  
  
“But what if you were being logical?” Kyuhyun asked, enjoying this lively version of Changmin.  
  
Changmin exhaled a big breath and reluctantly answered, “If I were being completely logical, then Mom saved me. Without Mom’s Joong blood, I’d be-”  
  
“Deader than a doornail,” Ryeowook finished for Changmin as he felt Shindong’s calf muscles in his legs.  
  
“How exactly can a doornail be dead?” Changmin asked curiously, with a furrowed brow.  
  
The rest of the room laughed, and Sulli reached out and squeezed Changmin’s arm. “You are so funny, Changmin!”  
  
“No, really it’s an inanimate object. It can’t be dead, because it was never alive to begin with,” Changmin explained.  
  
Ryeowook grinned at Changmin and instructed Sulli, “Sulli, go take Changmin for a walk. I need to focus on Shindong now.”  
  
“Yes, go take him for a walk, so I can get to walking myself,” Shindong quickly added.  
  
“But we wanted to help,” Changmin explained, hurt.  
  
Sulli took Changmin’s hand and pulled him toward the exit. “We can help later. He probably doesn’t want an audience right now.”  
  
“Okay,” Changmin relented without an argument and let Sulli lead him out of sickbay. The ensign from security, who had been standing quietly in the corner watching Changmin, followed them out of the room.  
  
Kyuhyun watched them leave and shook his head as he took a seat on one of the empty exam beds. “That’s so strange…it’s almost as if he likes her.”  
  
“It does seem like that,” Ryeowook agreed. “She took care of him on Belara, and now he’s strangely fond of her.”  
  
“It isn’t strange that he’s fond of her; it would be strange if he wasn’t. She’s a beautiful young woman,” Shindong pointed out.  
  
“True, but normally…normally Changmin wouldn’t spare her a glance,” Kyuhyun explained.  
  
Ryeowook, who was running a scanner up and down Shindong’s legs explained, “If it makes you feel any better, I think it’s completely innocent.”  
  
“It’s still really different for him. And since when does he call Jaejoong mom?” Kyuhyun asked.  
  
“Since he realized how it irritates the hell out of Jaejoong, it is done for pure spite. Jaejoong won’t be getting any Mother Day’s gifts from Changmin anytime soon,” Ryeowook explained as he finished examining Shindong’s new legs.  
  
“Also, Sulli does not seem like a girl that was tortured for over a year,” Kyuhyun added hesitantly, because he knew better than most that people handled tragedy differently.  
  
“She must be on some really good drugs is the only explanation I can come up with,” Shindong replied. “She is just so damn cheerful and nice all the time. It has to be happy drugs. Happy drugs I need more of, by the way, Doc.”  
  
“Nice try,” Ryeowook told Shindong, avoiding eye contact with them, and then adding, “But Sulli does appear to be an amazingly resilient person.”  
  
“There seems to be a lot of people like that on this ship,” Shindong said, darting his eyes to Kyuhyun, who was sitting on the bed across from him.  
  
Ryeowook straightened himself up, patted Shindong’s arm and looked him in the eye and told him, “Yes, there are a lot of people like that on this ship.”  
  
  
**********************  
  
“So you are really giving him that ship?” Yoochun asked as he walked down the corridor with Yunho and Kangin toward the mess hall for breakfast.  
  
“It’s what I promised,” Yunho responded.  
  
Kangin grunted. “It’s what you had to promise in order to get out of that bunker.”  
  
“Still, a promise is a promise. If I don’t honor my word, how can I expect others to honor it?”  
  
“Captain, if we are going to get a lesson in ethics, then I am going to doze off,” Yoochun griped.  
  
Yunho frowned down at his chief engineer. “No, I’m not going to give a lesson in ethics. It’s just that I can’t go back on my word. I told him he could have his pick of any of the ships that I took from ZhouMi, and that’s the one he wants.”  
  
“I hope he doesn’t give the ship to the Warlords as a-forgive-me gift,” Kangin grumbled under his breath. “It’s the best ship we confiscated by far.”  
  
“Do you really think he would?” Yunho asked. “You have spent the most time with him?”  
  
Kangin shook his head. “No, not really; I think that old friend of his is really getting to him. I don’t think its Yong’s nature to serve others. I think the Rebellion is getting more and more appealing to him by the minute.”  
  
“True,” Yunho agreed. “Yong would make a great rebel.”  
  
“Well, they need some great rebels; some of these people we have been forced to chauffeur around are not exactly the inspiring type,” Yoochun said in obvious distaste.  
  
“They don’t have much to work with, but now that we are handing over a whole fleet of ships to them, maybe it will make the recruitment progress easier,” Yunho replied hopefully. “With these ships, they can start making a real difference.”  
  
“And then they can be off the Expectations,” Yoochun said with a smile.  
  
“Why so eager to get rid of them? I could have sworn you were sniffing around one of them last night at dinner?” Kangin asked, suddenly suspicious of the amorous engineer.  
  
“Aww,” Yoochun said with a smile. “Nesala. What her face lacks, her body more than makes up for.”  
  
Yunho and Kangin both frowned and asked, “You didn’t?”  
  
“Not, yet,” Yoochun answered them. “I want to make damn sure they agree to get dropped off at the outpost first. Nothing is worse than a clingy female.”  
  
“Well, they are not staying aboard the ship. Once we have finished preparing them to take over control of their new ships, we will begin our search for SooYoung,” Yunho told his two old friends.  
  
“That’s probably a good thing; they are some rough looking women, but they are starting to look better by the hour,” Kangin admitted.  
  
Yoochun nodded his head in agreement. “Have you thought more about letting the crew take some leave at the outpost?”  
  
“Every time I give the crew shore leave, something crazy happens,” Yunho grumbled. “I know they need to get off the ship, and they need-”  
  
“To get laid,” Yoochun interrupted to say. “They need to get laid.”  
  
“They need to feel the ground under their feet and the sun on their faces. They need off the ship,” Yunho continued, trying to remember Heechul’s exact words, while ignoring Yoochun.  
  
Yoochun nudged Yunho and said slyly, “Are you not feeling amorous? Is Jaejoong still holding out on you?”  
  
Kangin started chuckling as the captain frowned, and added, “Yunho’s had his fill of jewelry for this lifetime, I bet.”  
  
“Especially pink, sparkly jewelry that makes Jaejoong withhold the goods,” Yoochun grinned and said at Yunho’s expense.  
  
Yunho looked at the both of them disapprovingly and asked in a deadpan voice, “You realize I’m your commanding officer, right?”  
  
“Yeah, but that has never stopped us from telling you exactly what we think,” Kangin told Yunho.  
  
“So true,” Yoochun agreed. “Our old friendship is more important than respecting your authority.”  
  
“Is that so? Well, then in the name of friendship, I have plans for the both of you tonight,” Yunho said with a touch of wickedness.  
  
Yoochun swallowed. “These plans don’t include me screwing Nesala?”  
  
“No, they do not…” Yunho paused as his eyes caught sight of Changmin and Sulli skipping down the corridor, hand in hand, with a young security guard chasing after them. “Changmin!”  
  
The sound of his father’s firm, disapproving voice had Changmin stopping quickly.  
  
Yunho hurried up to the Changmin and Sulli. “I know you are not skipping.”  
  
Changmin arched his left eyebrow and said in a completely innocent tone of voice, “Yunho, you would be mistaken…because we were indeed skipping. Sulli was saying how she used to love to skip, and now that her leg is repaired, she can skip again. It’s quite an enjoyable experience. I highly recommend it.”  
  
Yunho folded his arms and asked, completely exasperated, “Changmin, did you forget that you shouldn’t be skipping down the corridors of a starship?”  
  
“No,” Changmin answered honestly. “I just thought I could get away with it.”  
  
Yunho gritted his teeth and mentally counted to ten, then counted to twenty before answering, “There are four perfectly nice gyms on this ship to skip in.”  
  
“Yes, I am aware of that,” Changmin answered undaunted.  
  
Yoochun snickered and then told Changmin, “You better behave yourself, because your daddy is grumpy.”  
  
Changmin looked from Yoochun to Yunho. “Yes, I am also aware of that.”  
  
“Captain, I am very sorry,” Sulli apologized. “I should have refused him.”  
  
“Sulli, it’s perfectly alright. You are not at fault…just please remember next time not to indulge him,” Yunho told the young woman.  
  
“Yunho, I do not believe any harm was done,” Changmin told his father.  
  
Yunho’s eyes narrowed and he took Changmin by the arm. “That is not the point, Changmin. There can not be rules for everybody else, and separate rules for you. You are staying with me until you and Jaejoong return to the planet to resume your lessons.” Yunho then turned to Ensign DongWoo from security who had been tailing Changmin. “You are dismissed.”  
  
The young ensign nodded his head and hurried off. Kangin watched with slight amusement, knowing exactly how relieved the younger ensign must be. Watching Changmin was a full time job. “Sulli, where shall I escort you to? Now that Yunho’s has stolen Changmin away from you?” Kangin asked, reaching out his hand.  
  
Sulli took the outstretched hand, and answered with a smile, “Back to sickbay.” She knew Kangin well from the time they were stranded on the planet together. “You can tell me how you, Dr. Cho, Commander Leeteuk and Siwon were rescued from the planet.”  
  
“I would love to. It’s quite the tale.”  
  
Yoochun watched as Kangin led Sulli away and turned back to Yunho and Changmin. “Well, shall we go eat?”  
  
“No!” Changmin answered adamantly, shocking both Yoochun and Yunho.  
  
Yunho stared at his son, completely lost. “You don’t want to eat? Do you feel alright?”  
  
“I feel fine. I just don’t want to eat with you two. Mom is making me breakfast,” Changmin quickly explained.  
  
“Well, that is even better! Jaejoong is an excellent cook,” Yoochun said, licking his lips.  
  
Changmin turned his attention to Yoochun and quickly informed him, “You are not invited, and…” Changmin paused and turned back to Yunho, looking extremely guilty. “And neither are you.”  
  
Yoochun, who had been Yunho’s friend for a long time, noticed how the other man tensed, and quickly realized there was more to Changmin’s statement than Changmin’s usual greediness when it came to food. “He won’t feed you either?”  
  
“No,” Yunho admitted.  
  
“Wow, this is why I don’t believe in long lasting relationships. You are the one getting punished, but he is the one that lied to you for months,” Yoochun said in obvious disapproval.  
  
“Actually there is more to it than-”  
  
“Changmin, don’t!” Yunho interrupted Changmin quickly to keep his son from telling Yoochun that Jaejoong was shifting.  
  
“Yes, don’t defend your new mommy to me. I guess you are just a momma’s boy after all. You would side with the parent capable of cooking,” Yoochun said scornfully.  
  
“Yoochun, don’t. I am perfectly agreeable to Changmin and Jaejoong bonding; I encourage it. Go to the mess hall, and I will meet you there after I drop him off with Jaejoong,” Yunho said firmly, in a voice that let Yoochun know he meant it.  
  
“Are you sure?” Yoochun couldn’t resist asking before he turned to leave. “You might need a friend.”  
  
“Go,” Yunho ordered.  
  
Changmin watched as Yoochun walked away, and asked, “They do not know of the shifting?”  
  
“No, it isn’t any of their business,” Yunho said as he started walking toward the galley.  
  
Changmin frowned and pulled his arm away from Yunho. “I do not like being thought of in such a negative manner.”  
  
“It’s just Yoochun. You know he doesn’t mean half of what he says.”  
  
“I don’t like anybody thinking…thinking that I would trade in my loyalty to you for a plate of food.”  
  
Yunho side-eyed Changmin as they walked toward the galley, unable to keep from grinning. “You wouldn’t?”  
  
“It would have to be really good food,” Changmin amended, smiling back at Yunho.  
  
“That’s what I thought,” Yunho said as he continued walking. “About the shifting, the crew shouldn’t know. They would probably start a gambling pool to see who could guess your conception date.”  
  
“That’s an intriguing idea. I want to gamble, too. I’ve never gambled before,” Changmin said excitedly. “My extensive knowledge and the fact that I have the most access to the both of you would give me the winning edge.”  
  
Yunho groaned internally; for a moment, he had almost forgotten that he was with the new version of Changmin, and not his old Changmin. “There isn’t going to be any betting…it isn’t anybody’s business.”  
  
“But they are already aware of the fact that I exist,” Changmin said as they reached the galley.  
  
“Changmin, I am warning you,” Yunho hissed as he followed Changmin into the galley. “This conversation is over.”  
  
Changmin’s mischievous eyes immediately caught Jaejoong’s curious gaze as he walked into the galley. “I don’t think it’s very fair to Mom for him to be thought of in such a negative manner.”  
  
Jaejoong glared at Changmin and pointed his finger at his much taller son. “First off, what did I tell you about calling me mom?”  
  
“You told me you don’t like it,” Changmin answered as he sat down at the table, unbothered by the glare of his Joong parent.  
  
Jaejoong turned his attention to Yunho, who had stalled in his tracks after entering the galley. “And the second thing, what the hell is he talking about? Negative manner? I think I have had enough of that.”  
  
“It’s just Yoochun; it’s nothing,” Yunho explained.  
  
Jaejoong rested both of his hands against the stove that he was standing behind and reached out telepathically to the chief engineer. “Oh, that’s nice, Yunho. Nice how you defended me!”  
  
“Did you just read his mind?” Yunho accused.  
  
“Yes, I did! What are you going to do about it?” Jaejoong snapped. “Yoochun and even Kangin think I’m some horrible bitch.”  
  
“Well, you kinda are,” Yunho let slide off his tongue, immediately regretting it when Jaejoong eyes cut into him.  
  
“I’m shifting. I can’t help how I am,” Jaejoong seethed, unclenching his hands from the stove.  
  
Yunho took a step backwards. “I know that, but you don’t want them to know that.”  
  
“What’s wrong with them knowing? I want to gamble! If there is a gambling pool about when I’m going to be conceived, then it’s only fair that I get to play! I never get to have any fun,” Changmin whined as he played with his fork, moving it through the air as he sat at the table, waiting for Jaejoong to serve him.  
  
“Gambling pool?” Jaejoong asked, at a loss, as he stared at his son.  
  
Changmin smiled back at him. “Yep, and I would win!”  
  
“I’m going,” Yunho told them as he turned to leave.  
  
“Wait!” Jaejoong ordered as he walked away from the stove and toward the table. “I think we should discuss Changmin’s progress.”  
  
“I told Yoochun I would meet him for breakfast,” Yunho said hesitantly; Jaejoong hadn’t requested his presence in over a week.  
  
Jaejoong sat a plate filled with food in front of Changmin, but spoke to Yunho, “This will only take a second. We need to talk about Changmin’s progress. You can still meet Yoochun for breakfast, because I’m not feeding you.”  
  
“He was skipping in the corridors,” Yunho told Jaejoong, refusing to be baited into another fight. He would have loved to have told Jaejoong where he could shove his food, but he resisted.  
  
Jaejoong shrugged, watching his son inhale the food in front of him. “That doesn’t bother me. Was he an emotional wreck? Was he crying one minute and laughing the next?”  
  
“No, he’s been in a good mood all morning, actually,” Yunho told Jaejoong. “He was a little whiny at times, but no tears or anger.”  
  
Jaejoong, who was still watching Changmin, nodded his head approvingly. “This is what I want to hear. This is encouraging.”  
  
“Yeah,” Yunho conceded, watching both Jaejoong and Changmin. “For a moment I almost forgot…that he was different.”  
  
Jaejoong looked back up at Yunho and told him, “Soon you will also have to join us on the planet.”  
  
“Why?” Yunho asked alarmed.  
  
“Because he can’t hurt me, and I need to see what affect he has on a human brain. He can’t wear the necklace forever,” Jaejoong explained. “It needs to be off of him.”  
  
“Umm…on Belara…you said he could hurt me, and it didn’t seem like you were having an easy time controlling him,” Yunho asked, immediately suspicious.  
  
“I was not myself. I had started to shift, and I was not aware of it, plus my bondmate was purposely torturing me by suppressing our bond. You were never in any danger of permanent injury.”  
  
“I was NOT purposely torturing you, and your concern for my safety on Belara was real.”  
  
Jaejoong sat down at the table, and leaned back in his chair. “Do you not think I’m concerned for your safety now?”  
  
Changmin stopped eating and looked back and forth from Yunho to Jaejoong, waiting for Yunho to answer Jaejoong’s question.  
  
“I think that I will be getting to the mess hall now,” Yunho said, turning swiftly, and exiting the room, not answering the question.  
  
Yunho worked at keeping his pace nice and even…the pace of a calm captain in perfect control, as he left the galley and headed for the mess hall. Yunho worked to force thoughts of Jaejoong out of his mind. He couldn’t think about him. He had a ship to run and a million things to do.  
  
“Yunho!” the sound of Jaejoong’s raised voice, halted Yunho.  
  
Yunho turned around and was surprised to find that Jaejoong had followed him. “Jaejoong, I am not going to give you an answer. I don’t think anything I say right now will make you happy.”  
  
“I’m sorry, if I have said things to make you think…that I would allow you to be hurt,” Jaejoong said as he slowly approached his mate. “It’s just that…I feel angry all the time.”  
  
“I know.”  
  
“It’s the shifting, making me behave this way. But you must know, it’s physically impossible for me to allow you to stay injured…I would always heal you.”  
  
“But it’s not just the shifting. You think I wore that necklace to purposely torture you,” Yunho told Jaejoong as the other man came within three feet of him and stopped.  
  
“You did.”  
  
“No, I didn’t. I was in the middle of a rescue mission - the most important rescue mission of my life. If I failed…I had to know that failure was mine, and only mine.”  
  
Jaejoong’s expression that had softened on catching up with Yunho, hardened again. “That’s bullshit. You didn’t trust me. You didn’t do it to spare me any future blame.”  
  
“I didn’t trust you because you had been lying to me for months.”  
  
“To protect you and Changmin!”  
  
“From what? What were you protecting us from? We all know the truth now, and the universe has not ceased to exist!”  
  
“You wouldn’t understand! I have been told for as long as I can remember not to tamper with time,” Jaejoong shouted at Yunho.  
  
“You already tampered with time in the future…when you sent Changmin back in time to me. You were just keeping secrets. You are secretive, Jaejoong! Maybe all Joongs are, and for good reason, considering how this galaxy sees you, but you have to trust me! You are the one always going on about the fact that we are bonded for life and how we have a timeless love, and yet you kept the most important fact of our lives from me.”  
  
Jaejoong squeezed his eyes shut. “Do you want me to admit that I was wrong?”  
  
“Yes, that would be a start.”  
  
Jaejoong eyes flew open, and he declared, “Well, you are never going to hear me say that. I wasn’t wrong! I wasn’t wrong to try to protect you. You might think I was wrong, but I didn’t do it because I’m secretive…I did it to protect you and Changmin. I always put you first! Always, and you never do the same.”  
  
Yunho paled. “Jaejoong, I have a ship-”  
  
“Yes, your ship! I know it must always come first, but it shouldn’t! You are the only bonded person I know that values something more than he does his bondmate!”  
  
Yunho clenched his fists, and told Jaejoong in a voice barely above a whisper. “You knew exactly who I was when you bonded with me. I never made you false promises. I never begged you to bond with me…in truth; I had no say in the matter at all.”  
  
Jaejoong gasped taken aback by Yunho’s words. “Do you regret it?”  
  
Yunho reached out for Jaejoong, and the Joong stepped back quickly to avoid his touch. “No, I don’t regret it. I love you…even when you are like this, but I will not be made to feel guilty for choices you made.”  
  
Jaejoong looked down that the floor. “That’s right; you never had any choice in the matter, did you?”  
  
“No, but you saved my life, and I do love you more than anything…yes, even more than Changmin, and more than this ship…the bond demands that of me. I’m not immune to the power of our bond. I just fight against it everyday,” Yunho confessed, causing Jaejoong to look up at him, astonished. “But Jaejoong, just because I feel that way doesn’t mean that I can disregard my other responsibilities. What I want and the right thing to do are not always in agreement, and I have to do what is right, no matter how I feel. That is the person I want to be…that is the person I struggle to be everyday.”  
  
Jaejoong sighed in relief, and reached up to touch Yunho’s face, but pulled his hand away at the last minute. “You really love me more than anything?”  
  
“Yes, I don’t know how to describe it, but it’s just how it is. I have no say in the matter.”  
  
“I’m sorry for being so difficult. I hate feeling angry with you all the time. I know if I just touched you…I wouldn’t feel this anger anymore, but I can’t speed up the shifting. I can’t.”  
  
“I do know this, and that’s why you need to turn around and go check on Changmin,” Yunho told Jaejoong sadly, wanting nothing more than to just grab Jaejoong and be finished with this stage of the shifting.  
  
Jaejoong nodded his head in agreement. “He will be finishing the food and wandering off.”  
  
“Go,” Yunho told Jaejoong.


	2. Ensign Sunggyu

“Dare I ask who you are staring at so intensely?” Sungmin asked Junsu, who was staring in a fixed direction over Sungmin’s right shoulder.

Junsu immediately broke his gaze and looked at Sungmin, who sat across from him at breakfast, and told him, “Umm…Nesala.”

“Oh, she has a nice ass,” Eunhyuk, who was sitting next to Junsu, chimed in. Sungmin frowned at Eunhyuk, causing his friend to add, “You know, Sungmin, you’re not a woman. You don’t have to be offended for all of womankind.”

“I’m well aware of the fact that I’m not a woman, but I can still find your statement offensive. It isn’t like you, either,” Sungmin snapped back at his old friend. “Usually you have more tact.”

Eunhyuk ignored Sungmin to look over his shoulder at the other table where Nesala sat. “Yoochun, that greasy dog; look at him all over her. Can’t he just stick to one gender?”

Sungmin turned around to stare and frowned. “No, he doesn’t discriminate…he subjects all members of the human race equally to his perpetual state of horniness.”

“Probably some four legged mammals, too,” Junsu said under his breath with unusual harshness.

Sungmin turned back around to study Junsu, not liking what he saw. “I’m sure Nesala can handle herself. She doesn’t exactly look like she’s resistant to his advances.”

“Well, my opinion of her has dropped dramatically. I have no respect for anybody who willingly gets involved with him,” Junsu said with barely controlled anger.

Eunhyuk paled. “It’s just sex probably…you know having sex with him isn’t the same as being involved with him.”

“I don’t know about that; I think sex is pretty involved. I mean, it’s the most intimate physical act two people can share,” Sungmin said purposely in order to make Eunhyuk squirm in his seat.

Siwon, who had been quietly eating his breakfast beside Sungmin, doing his best to avoid the conversation, suddenly choked on his steamed rice at Sungmin’s words. Sungmin reached one hand over to pound on Siwon’s back while continuing to glare at Eunhyuk.

“It’s not always intimate…sometimes it is just for fun. Just because you have sex with somebody doesn’t mean you care for them…not at all!” Eunhyuk said in his defense.

“I wouldn’t know,” Sungmin replied, still pounding on Siwon’s back. He was enjoying the sweat that was suddenly forming on Eunhyuk’s brow. “I choose not to be intimate with people I care nothing for.”

“Me either,” Junsu said in agreement with Sungmin.

Eunhyuk turned to Junsu, looking very guilty. “You are a virgin, and Sungmin has only slept with three people, so you two just hold sex in a higher regard than most people.”

Siwon, who had stopped choking, turned to Sungmin and asked in a raspy voice, “Just three?”

“Actually four,” Sungmin corrected, sparing Siwon a quick glance and a wink before turning back to focus on this friends sitting across from him at the table.

“Four?” Eunhyuk asked, now all his attention on Sungmin. “Since when has it been four? Who else did you sleep with?”

“Now, I think this conversation is getting a little too personal,” Siwon told them, his usual calm dissipating by the second.

“Siwon, don’t be offended…we are all friends here. We don’t keep secrets,” Sungmin told Siwon, but he was grinning evilly at Eunhyuk. “Maybe I slept with Commander Yoochun.”

“You what!” Junsu exclaimed, his jaw dropping in shock.

“I said maybe, but don’t worry, I didn’t. Junsu, I know you and Commander Yoochun have some complicated weirdness going on between you. I would never disrespect you by sleeping with him,” Sungmin told Junsu, but aimed his words at Eunhyuk.

Eunhyuk’s mouth dropped open, suddenly keenly aware that Sungmin knew about his night with Commander Yoochun.

“I don’t care who he sleeps with,” Junsu lied, standing up eager in eagerness to escape the uncomfortable conversation. “I have to get to the hanger deck. I have a load of work to do today.”

“I will walk you there,” Eunhyuk said, getting up quickly to avoid Sungmin’s heated stare.

Sungmin watched his two friends leave and looked at Siwon apologetically. “I’m sorry if any of that made you feel awkward. Nothing I said was aimed at you.”

“I slowly came to that conclusion. So, Eunhyuk and Commander Yoochun have been intimate?”

Sungmin nodded his head. “It seems that we weren’t the only ones that took advantage of the gender switch.”

“Oh.”

“Eunhyuk makes me so angry. He should have known better than to have sex with Yoochun.”

“I did not realize that Junsu had any claim on Commander Yoochun.”

“He doesn’t, not really, other than the fact that Commander Yoochun has some weird attachment or should I say obsession with him.”

“Does Junsu not feel the same?”

Sungmin pondered Siwon’s words before answering, “I’m really not sure. There is something there…I am just not sure what it is. Everybody that cares for Junsu knows this, except Eunhyuk, who refuses to see it. I fear what will happen if Junsu finds out that Eunhyuk and Yoochun have had sex.”

“Perhaps, you are needlessly worrying. It is very obvious that for Eunhyuk it meant nothing,” Siwon told Sungmin as he picked up a glass of milk.

“I realize that for people like you and Eunhyuk sex can be totally meaningless, but Junsu is different,” Sungmin said, deep in thought. “Yoochun chose Eunhyuk because he couldn’t have Junsu, and I’m sure it was meant to purposely hurt Junsu.”

“Then why has the commander not told Junsu of the deed?” Siwon asked curiously.

Sungmin propped his elbow up on the table and rested his chin against his hand. “I think he cooled down and realized what he had done, but Yoochun is hard to predict. Yoochun is my friend, but when he gets angry he tends to lash out.”

“Then perhaps Eunhyuk should tell Junsu first, before this knowledge is used to hurt Junsu,” Siwon said wisely.

“My thoughts exactly,” Sungmin agreed.

******************************

Yunho walked into the mess hall and his eyes immediately fell on Sungmin and Siwon, who appeared very cozy together. The two of them were leaning into each other as they discussed something in whispers. He then glanced at Commander Yoochun, who was sitting at the table full of the female rebels. The female rebels refused to be beamed down to the rebellion outpost, due to some minor grievance they had with one of the rebel factions taking up residence there. Yunho mentally groaned; he didn’t have time to deal with the quarrelsome rebels, or more accurately, he didn’t want to. He had already had his fill of people and their imagined grievances for the day. They were not staying on his ship.

Yunho was tempted to turn around and forgo eating when his eyes fell on another table, and a smile broke out on his face. Yes, there was something else he needed to attend to. He headed toward the table.

“I know the captain is mad at me,” DongWoo said heartbrokenly to the two men he was seated with in the mess hall.

Ensign Henry, who was sitting across the table from DongWoo, and beside Ensign SungGyu, smiled sympathetically at the despondent ensign. “I’m sure he isn’t.”

“He dismissed me,” DongWoo groaned, looking as if his world was about to end.

“He dismisses people all the time. It’s what a captain does. He dismisses people,” SungGyu told the dejected ensign from security.

“But I let Lieutenant Jung skip in the corridor,” DongWoo told them as if it were the worse crime imaginable.

“From what I’ve heard, Lieutenant Jung is nearly impossible to control; that’s why security is forced to babysit him,” Henry told his friend.

“If you are really this concerned about it, go speak with Lieutenant Lee about it. I’m sure he will clear it up for you in no time,” SungGyu said rationally to the other man, who was staring at his cereal as if all hope was lost.

“I couldn’t tell Lieutenant Lee! I would be too ashamed,” DongWoo exclaimed, lifting his head to look at his longtime friend. Before the tragedy that had claimed the life of so many of the crew, the two young men had been roommates, while they did their training on the ship, and at the academy. Now, everybody aboard the ship had their own quarters, but the two of them had continued to be close.

“There is nothing to be ashamed of; you are overthinking this. If the captain was truly upset with you, you would know it,” SungGyu assured his friend.

“Very true,” Yunho confirmed from behind SungGyu and Henry, shocking the young men at the table.

“Captain,” the three men said at once as they all quickly stood up to salute the captain.

“None of that,” Yunho said as he sat his tray down beside DongWoo and took a seat.

SungGyu was the first to recover from the very unlikely occurrence of the captain joining them for breakfast. “Captain, I hope you are having an enjoyable morning.”

“Not particularly,” Yunho told him as he picked up a piece of bacon and started eating it.

“I’m sorry to hear that,” Ensign Henry told the captain. “Hopefully the rest of the day will be better.”

“One can hope,” Yunho told them as he studied SungGyu, who was sitting across from him. He liked the young ensign. SungGyu had been very popular at the academy with the professors and the other cadets. He had excelled in all his classes, and if the tragedy had not stranded him on the Expectations he would have gone on to graduate with high honors at Starfleet Academy.

“Captain, I am so sorry for letting Lieutenant Jung skip down the corridor,” DongWoo apologized. “He was just so fast, and he wouldn’t stop…and I’m really sorry.”

Yunho turned and grinned at the nervous young man sitting beside him, reaching out a hand and patting him on the back. “Ensign, it’s perfectly okay. I don’t expect anybody in security could have stopped him. I just want security watching him, so they can alert me if he decides to mutiny.”

“Oh,” DongWoo said with much relief.

“I am here to talk to Ensign SungGyu about a request I have,” Yunho explained, turning back to face SungGyu.

SungGyu sat up straighter. “Captain, I would be happy to do anything you request of me.”

Yunho smiled back at him. “You know my helmsman is busy teaching the rebel pilots to fly their new ships.”

“Yes Sir, Ensign Junsu is the best pilot on the ship,” SungGyu replied, not knowing where the conversation was headed.

“He is,” Yunho agreed. “I am going to have you take up his post on the bridge until he returns. How does that sound to you?”

“The bridge…what shift?” SungGyu asked stunned. Surely he had misheard…he would be taking up one of the other shifts, not the main shift that Ensign Junsu held.

“Ensign Junsu’s shift, of course,” Yunho informed him, watching as the young ensign took in the unlikely news.

“I would be honored, Sir,” SungGyu told the captain, unable to hide the smile on his face. Ensigns Henry and DongWoo had matching smiles on their faces.

“Of course, it’s just temporary while Ensign Junsu is busy,” Yunho reminded the young man as he leaned back in his chair studying him.

SungGyu nodded his head eagerly, still unbelieving of the honor being bestowed on him.

“Captain,” Commander Yoochun said in a voice that did not hide his irritation as he suddenly appeared and sat down beside the Captain. “I thought you were going to join me for breakfast?”

“I didn’t want to disturb you,” Yunho told his old friend.

“Please disturb me next time, I would much rather you disturb me than…than for you to steal my best people,” Yoochun complained.

“Yoochun, I am the captain…they are all my people,” Yunho told Yoochun, correcting him.

Yoochun glared at the three younger men at the table for their disloyalty, and ordered, “You three go do something constructive.”

The three younger men quickly jumped to their feet and left the table in a hurry at Yoochun’s orders.

“You can’t have SungGyu! I told you, you can’t have him,” Yoochun hissed under his breath. “He’s mine.”

“Yoochun, stop being so selfish,” Yunho chastised. “I have great things planned for that young man. You should have seen his eyes light up. That boy might excel at keeping your engineering department in perfect order, but it’s not his passion.”

“He’s just a cadet!” Yoochun reminded the captain.

“I’m well aware of the fact that he never graduated from the academy, but if fate had not intervened he would have graduated a year ago.”

“That doesn’t mean he should be assigned bridge duty.”

“You are so selfish when it comes to your help. You remind me of Changmin when it comes to food,” Yunho told Yoochun, not hiding his dissatisfaction with the other man. “I was assigned bridge duty immediately upon graduating from the academy.”

“That’s because you are you…and…and…dammit! I hate it when you are right,” Yoochun cursed.

“Which is most of the time,” Yunho said smugly, but the look Yoochun gave him made Yunho quickly add. “I know he’s young; so many of them are young. I hated forcing some of the younger cadets to step up to being ensigns before their time, but we really didn’t have a choice. We needed all the people we could get.”

Yoochun reached a hand out and stole a piece of bacon off of Yunho’s plate and grumbled, “You go after Ensign Henry and it’s war.”

Yunho laughed. “Ensign Henry is safe…I promise.”

 

*****************************

 

“Changmin, meditation works best when you actually shut your eyes,” Jaejoong advised from the small hot springs he sat soaking in.

Changmin stood up from the rocky ground he had been sitting on while he had been trying to find his center. “Can we go back to the ship?”

“No,” Jaejoong answered, not bothering to open his eyes as he soaked in the warm water.

“You are just avoiding Yunho.”

“Yes, I am.”

Changmin sat down at the water’s edge opposite Jaejoong, dipping his bare feet in the water. “I don’t like it when you two fight.”

“That’s only natural.”

“Not for me, it isn’t.”

“We are your parents, of course you would want us to get along,” Jaejoong reasoned, keeping his eyes closed; enjoying the feel of the warm water.

“Especially if your getting along is crucial to my continued existence; at any moment I could cease to exist. The moment of my conception lost forever,” Changmin groused as he kicked his feet, purposely splashing Jaejoong in the face with the water.

Jaejoong’s eyes flew open, as he reached up to wipe the water out of his eyes. “You are not going to cease to exist. I’m only postponing the shifting. Plus it is highly unlikely that you are conceived the first time I shift. That level of fertility is almost unheard of in Joongs.”

“Yunho isn’t a Joong.”

Jaejoong frowned, realizing the truth of Changmin’s words. “No, he isn’t, but still I promise that in any life, I would be hesitant at the thought of being pregnant. Even if teaching you to control your abilities wasn’t such a priority…I would still be avoiding him.”

“Hesitant? More like down right resistant, and hostile at the very thought of it.”

Jaejoong shrugged his shoulders, unable to deny Changmin’s comment. “Do not judge, until you have been in my situation. You can’t even admit-”

“I don’t want to talk about that!” Changmin screeched, losing his fragile control and jumping to his feet.

“Sit! Find your center!” Jaejoong yelled, chastising his son. Changmin sat down quickly, obeying his Joong parent. He closed his eyes, and forced himself to calm down. He focused on the image of crystal blue waters, allowing the image to soothe him.

“Better,” Jaejoong said proudly as he watched Changmin easily regain his control. “With the necklace off, you must watch yourself closely. An outburst like that could harm a human.”

Changmin kept his eyes closed and asked, “Would it kill them?”

“No, not Earth humans, but it could knock them unconscious.”

“Are Earth humans different than other humans in this galaxy?” Changmin opened his eyes and asked, intrigued by the thought.

Jaejoong contemplated Changmin’s question. “Yes, their mental shields are more adapt. When I first met Yunho I was shocked at the power of his shielding, but I quickly attributed it to his exposure to you. However, as time went by I have found that most Earth humans are more evolved than the humans of this galaxy when it comes to telepathy.”

“The Vulcans,” Changmin said with a huge smile as he scooted forward to dangle his legs over the side of the water’s edge. “If I could be any species I would choose to be a Vulcan. They are so intelligent! I wouldn’t mind the pointy ears. Vulcans don’t have stupid emotions either. I wish I didn’t. I’m always so emotional. It would be so great if I could turn into a Vulcan and then I-”

“Changmin, focus on your thoughts. Do not ramble; what were you going to say about Vulcans originally?”

“The Vulcans are an advanced race in my galaxy with great intelligence and they also have telepathic powers. They believe that Earth humans have the capability for telepathy.”

“I believe they are correct,” Jaejoong replied, relaxing in the water.

Changmin opened his eyes, watching Jaejoong resting in the water. “It’s 1700 hours aboard the ship. When are we returning to it?”

“Just a little longer, I love the water…do you enjoy water?” Jaejoong asked his son, suddenly curious.

“I know how to swim, but I have always been more interesting in learning than in swimming. But…” Changmin sighed struggling to remain calm. “When I was dying…I dreamed of water?”

“Not when you were dying, but when your Joong heritage stepped in to save your life. Joongs are tied closely to the power of water. You will always see crystal blue water when you are in a healing sleep…you will sense its great power.”

“The Guardian…it had the same water in the middle of it,” Changmin pointed out.

“Exactly, the crystal blue waters can take you anywhere and return you from the verge of death,” Jaejoong explained, watching as Changmin took in his words. “You sense the power of the water, that’s why you focus on it when you meditate.”

Changmin nodded his head, agreeing with Jaejoong. He knew that his mind was raw, and an open book to Jaejoong. Only with Jaejoong’s initial guidance was Changmin even able to meditate when they first beamed down to the deserted area on the planet.

“Your control grows everyday, by leaps and bounds; soon you will not be dependent on the necklace,” Jaejoong said, sensing his son’s thoughts.

Changmin reached out his hand and picked up the necklace that lay on the ground beside him. “Just in case…I never want to be far from it.”

Jaejoong frowned in dislike, but he knew where his son’s hesitation lay. “You will not always be a danger to those you care about. You are barely a danger now.”

Changmin stood back up, and stared down at the necklace. He knew Jaejoong had plans for the necklace once he wasn’t dependent on it. “It’s not that I don’t believe you. I do. I just can’t allow you to destroy it. I need to know it still exists, that it’s there if ever I need it.”

Jaejoong mood instantly darkened. “As long as it exists Yunho can wear it anytime he likes. I can’t allow that.”

“Perhaps we should postpone this discussion till you have finished shifting…right now you are too angry at Yunho to think clearly,” Changmin advised as he put his shoes on.

“The fact that your father wore that necklace purposely will not change once I have finished shifting,” Jaejoong said through clenched teeth.

“I will not defend him, since I wish to continue this feeling of…of camaraderie we have developed in the last week, but you are being extremely irrational.”

“You will not defend him, because there isn’t a defense for what he did. He purposely hurt me.”

“There is a defense, I assure you.”

Jaejoong stared up disapprovingly at Changmin from the pool of water. “Then please, enlighten me.”

Changmin turned away from Jaejoong’s disapproving gaze and answered honestly. “You are selfish. Yunho is not selfish. All your complaints focus on you, and entirely on you. It’s as if…for you nothing else was occurring at the time. As if I wasn’t dying, and Kyuhyun and Shindong weren’t being tortured. You-”

Jaejoong stood up quickly, wearing only white shorts. “You weren’t even there,” Jaejoong pointed out, interrupting Changmin.

“No, but I have listened to you. And more importantly, I know Yunho. I have observed him for years; I know the extreme importance he places on the truth, and you had lied to him for months.”

“For your safety!” Jaejoong reminded Changmin as he stepped out of the small pool of water.

Changmin forced himself to remain calm, and explained, “Almost seven months ago Yunho chose to answer your cry for help, an act that could have stranded him on a dangerous planet for an unlimited amount of time. We are told he was mortally injured by the Zusader’s whips-”

“He was mortally injured,” Jaejoong interrupted defensively, as he slipped his uniform on his wet body.

“And you decided to save his life, and in doing so you initiated a life long bond with him,” Changmin continued. “You did not have a great romance. Yunho did not get used to the idea of loving you. Yunho did not fall in love with you. He had to accept you; his life depended on it. He was forced to allow you, a mysterious alien, to the join the ship…a mysterious alien with great powers. He had to place his trust in you, and trust that you would not misuse your great mental powers.”

“I didn’t…I only did when I was forced too,” Jaejoong amended quickly.

“Even now when I explain Yunho to you, you constantly defend yourself,” Changmin snapped his irritation growing. Jaejoong’s selfishness and inability to see past his own point of view was making Changmin lose grip on his fragile control.

Jaejoong clamped his mouth shut.

“He then found out that you have been lying to him from day one, and manipulating everybody’s brain, so a very obvious truth was not discovered. And also at this time…I was kidnapped. Yunho does not love me because he’s supposed to. He doesn’t love me because I am his son. He does not love me because of some bond we share. Yunho loves me because of a life we have spent together. We were brothers long before we were anything else. We have always been friends. Bonds are strong, and apparently Joong bonds are all powerful, but it is history that fills our mind with memories, and that is where faith and trust are truly established. You preach of the power of time, and yet you totally disregard all the time Yunho and I have shared together.”

Jaejoong nodded his head, truly hearing his son’s words as he walked closer to Changmin and took the necklace from his hand. “You are right, and earlier when I spoke with Yunho he was right about a few things too. I’m not usually like this. I tend to be selfish, but usually I’m selfish of the time I spend with Yunho…not like this. I just feel so defensive, as if I am always being attacked. From the moment Yunho put on that necklace of his own free will…I haven’t been myself.”

“Is it entirely the shifting?”

“No,” Jaejoong admitted as he reached up and put the necklace on Changmin. “Most of it is the shifting, but some of it is just being a Joong. We place extreme importance on our bonds. Sadly, the bond I should have with you is gone. I do not care for you…in the way I should, and you are smart enough to know this. I wish it was different, but sometime in the future, in order to save your life I will destroy our bond forever.”

Changmin stared his almost tearful parent in the eyes, and he believed Jaejoong’s words. Changmin’s oldest memory was of a broken, dying Jaejoong telling him that he loved him and Yunho more than anything. Jaejoong might not know how much he would someday care for his son, but Changmin knew. “We will just have to work to create another kind of bond.” The look of tenderness that suddenly appeared on Jaejoong’s face made Changmin add mischievously, “Mom.”

 

*********************

Ensign Eunhyuk just stared at Ensign SungGyu in shock; how the hell had he managed to get assigned to the bridge? He wasn’t even a real ensign. True, they were just in orbit around a planet, but still it was a huge honor; a huge honor that shouldn’t be awarded to a mere cadet, in Eunhyuk’s opinion.

“Captain, Lieutenant Donghae reports that Lieutenant Jung and Councilor Jaejoong are requesting to be beamed back aboard,” Ensign Minho said from the science station.

“Councilor Jaejoong…” Yunho paused; when had they started referring to Jaejoong as the councilor? That was his official position since joining the ship, but Yunho couldn’t ever remember hearing anybody refer to him by his title previously. Yunho pushed those thoughts away. “Inform him to beam them aboard.”

“Yes, Captain,” Ensign Minho replied.

Yunho turned around to eye the young ensign that had taken up Changmin’s duties. “Ensign Minho, you are finding time to visit your cousin?”

“Some,” Minho answered.

Yunho frowned; of course it would be hard to assume Changmin’s duties, and find time to do anything else. “Make time, Ensign.”

“Yes, Captain.”

Yunho turned back to the screen and watched as the pilots tested the ships in the space in front of them. Yunho wished he could join them. He envied Junsu who was instructing the rebels in piloting their new ships. Especially the one person fighter ships…that sense of freedom. How he missed it.

The doors to the bridge opened and Prince Siwon entered for their appointment, causing Yunho to stand up. “Siwon, if you will follow me.”

Siwon nodded his head and followed the captain into his ready room.

Yunho went to his desk and sat down, and smiled at the prince. Yunho was feeling extremely pleased with himself at the moment. An idea had occurred to him earlier that would prove most useful to the ship, and spare him some grief. “Siwon, I’m going to get right to the point. I know you were trained in all matters involving diplomacy on your planet, and I also know you have been learning everything about the Federation and its diplomacy program for months.”

“Yes, you are correct.”

Yunho smiled, he could tell the prince was eager to hear more. “Although security is a noble profession, I feel your talents could be better used elsewhere. Shindong is of course the consultant for this ship, but he’s not exactly a diplomat. What would you say if I made you the official liaison for the ship?”

“I would be most honored, Captain.”

Yunho beamed with satisfaction. “I want you to work closely with Shindong, especially when we encounter the beings of this galaxy, but right now I have another problem I need you to take care of.”

************************

“Junsu, did you hear the good news?” Eunhyuk asked his best friend as he watched him climb out of the space fighter he had been flight testing.

Junsu jumped off the ladder leading up to the cockpit, landing on the deck beside Eunhyuk, and eagerly asked, “What good news?”

“We get to visit Altanguerel tomorrow!”

“Shore leave?”

“Well, we are only getting 90 minutes of surface time, and we have to take turns, but I’m still excited.”

“Isn’t it just a rebel outpost?”

“Yes, but they have a huge street market set up down there with a lot of shops and stands. A lot of the rebels live at the outpost and around it,” Eunhyuk explained.

Junsu brightened. “Maybe we can buy something cool.”

“That’s what I was thinking,” Eunhyuk said as he walked out of the hanger deck with Junsu. “What time do you think you can manage to be free tomorrow?”

“Anytime before noon should be fine for me to take a break, L can cover for me,” Junsu answered. “At 1300 hours I have to test some of the newly repaired ships.”

“What about 1000?”

“Sounds great.”

“Okay, I will arrange my bridge relief…speaking of bridge relief, do you know the captain has that cadet SungGyu covering for you?” Eunhyuk said distastefully.

“He’s not a cadet anymore,” Junsu said, rolling his eyes at his friend.

“I suppose,” Eunhyuk grumbled. “Well, I will tell Donghae that we leave at 1000 hrs.”

Junsu turned to look at his friend, surprised. “Just Donghae? What about Sungmin?”

“Umm…Sungmin has been busy helping the captain. I’m sure he has his own plans. Yep, I am sure he has his own plans…so just us three will go together…he won’t mind,” Eunhyuk stammered out. He did not need for Sungmin and Junsu to be hanging out for ninety minutes. Somehow, Sungmin knew what he had done, and he knew Sungmin would happily tell Junsu if he thought it was the right thing to do.

“Why do you think Siwon and Sungmin are together?” Junsu asked exasperated, assuming Eunhyuk’s problem with Sungmin had to do with the tall prince. “They haven’t said anything about being together, and they are both the upfront type.”

“Huh?” Eunhyuk asked at a loss. “I don’t think they are dating…why would you say that?”

“You always start acting all weird every time Sungmin starts dating somebody,” Junsu explained.

“I do not!”

Junsu snorted in disbelief. “You totally do; the whole time he was with Kyuhyun you threw a fit.”

“Because he was making the worst choice ever! You saw how it ended with Kyuhyun! I was totally right to disapprove of that sexcapade!”

“True,” Junsu had to concede. “But I don’t think he could do any worse than Kyuhyun.”

“Hey, don’t tempt fate like that!” Eunhyuk warned. “I have heard enough of Sungmin whining and crying about his pitiful love life to last me a life time.”

“Whatever; you love it. You want all your friends to need you, and nobody else,” Junsu told his old friend as they left the hanger deck and headed for the mess hall. “You are a friend hoarder.”

 

******************

“Wake up, My Love,” Ryeowook whispered as he bent down and kissed Kyuhyun lightly on the cheek.

Kyuhyun, who had been enjoying an afternoon nap while Ryeowook worked, opened his eyes and smiled up at his husband. “What did you bring me to eat?”

Ryeowook straightened up and declared, “Not at thing.”

“What do you mean…not a thing?” Kyuhyun asked in surprise as he sat up in bed, still wearing his gray civilian clothes.

Ryeowook took Kyuhyun’s hand and dragged him from bed. “We have a date.”

“A date,” Kyuhyun repeated as Ryeowook dragged him from the bedroom. “I am not really up for dating. I think venturing out to sickbay is my limit for the day.”

“Kyuhyun, have faith in your doctor…you are going to love it.”

“Okay,” Kyuhyun said uneasily as Ryeowook led him out of their quarters and down the corridor. “Can you give me a hint?”

“All will soon be known.”

“Then you can give me a hint.”

“Not yet,” Ryeowook told him as they stepped into a lift and Ryeowook ordered, “Deck ten.”

Kyuhyun frowned. “If your idea of a date is eating in the mess hall, then I’m going to have to decline. I would prefer it if we ate alone in our quarters.”

“So little faith,” Ryeowook mumbled as the door to the lift opened, depositing them on deck ten.

“The Galley then? Did you cook for me? I thought Jaejoong was holding the Galley hostage for his own personal use?”

“Jaejoong is stingy with the Galley, but he’d let me have it for a night.”

A big smile broke out on Kyuhyun’s face. “You are going to cook for me, great.”

“Nope, I’m not cooking.”

Kyuhyun frowned as they passed the Galley, and continued done the corridor. “But there isn’t anything else down here that’s opened. It’s all closed off recreational areas.”

“But I have friends in high places,” Ryeowook told him, sounding very pleased with himself.

Kyuhyun’s eyes widened in shock as they came to an abrupt stop in front of the holo suites. “You didn’t!”

“I did, with a little help from Commander Yoochun,” Ryeowook told Kyuhyun.

“You got us a holodeck?”

“I did, and you are going to love it!” Ryeowook assured him as he pulled his husband through the door that led to the inside of the holo suites.

“This is forbidden; the captain had all the holodecks closed, and I agreed with him…Yoochun opened it for us? The energy drain-”

“Kyuhyun, stop,” Ryeowook interrupted. “Yoochun would not turn it on if he thought for one minute it was draining his precious engines. The main reason the captain keeps these closed is because he doesn’t want people to lose sight of reality. You know how addictive they are, and especially to a crew that has gone through what ours has.”

“True,” Kyuhyun relented. “I am just going to enjoy myself.”

“That’s more like it,” Ryeowook told him with a smile.

“Enjoy myself just like any other regular guy, and not like a commander who might get screamed at.”

“The captain would never scream at you.”

“I know…I’m going to have fun,” Kyuhyun vowed.

“Archway open,” Ryeowook ordered and suddenly an opening to a world of illusion created by enhanced computer simulations appeared.

“Ancient Rome!” Kyuhyun gasped as he stepped through the archway to stare in wonder at the thriving city of ancient Rome.

Ryeowook gazed at the huge smile on Kyuhyun’s face, willing himself not to start crying. He felt like he hadn’t seen that huge beautiful smile in so long. Kyuhyun’s recovery was going remarkably well, but still his husband had suffered so much. “Yoochun also had the food synthesizers turned on, so we are just going to have to eat here.”

Kyuhyun broke his gaze away from the wonderful treasures that were awaiting him to stare down at his shorter husband, who was still holding his hand, and now wearing a white toga. Kyuhyun looked down at himself and noticed he was wearing a matching one.

Ryeowook grinned up at him, and said teasingly, “While in Rome…”

“Do as the Romans,” Kyuhyun finished. “Have I told you how much I love you?”

“A few times.”

Kyuhyun turned away from Ryeowook and back to the scene of ancient Rome. He couldn’t wait to start exploring. “Try to keep up with me, old man.”

Ryeowook’s mouth fell open as Kyuhyun broke away from him and moved toward the ancient city, eager to discover all its secrets. “Eight months, Kyuhyun! Eight months! I’m older by eight months!” Ryeowook protested as he hurried after his husband.

****************

 

“So, should we invite Yunho?” Jaejoong asked as he chopped up vegetables as he stood at the counter inside the Galley.

Changmin, who was sitting at the table, waiting for his dinner, looked at his Joong parent suspiciously. “Would that be safe? I’d hate for you to maim him.”

“I wouldn’t maim him; I just feel bad for what I said to him earlier.”

“So…you wouldn’t start fighting with him?”

Jaejoong grimaced and looked down at the food he was preparing. “I’d probably start a fight…I can’t help it.”

“Then no, we shouldn’t invite him; but what about Sulli?”

“You want to share your food with Sulli?” Jaejoong asked, taken aback. He looked over the counter to study his son. Changmin’s selfishness when it came to food was not faked, nor was it exaggerated in any way or manner.

The look on Jaejoong’s face had Changmin feeling self-conscious, fast. “We could ask Minho to come too,” Changmin quickly amended.

Jaejoong’s brown eyes were glued to Changmin’s blue ones. The fact that his son was very attached to the human girl they had rescued from Belara had not escaped Jaejoong’s notice. “When you were on Belara, did you touch her?”

Changmin shook his head quickly.

“Are you sure?”

Changmin paled and answered honestly, knowing Jaejoong would easily find out the truth in the morning when his necklace was removed, “She touched me, but so did the groundskeeper when they carried me out to the river.”

“Was that the extent of it?”

Changmin closed his eyes and inwardly groaned, “No, I couldn’t respond to her…I couldn’t move, but she was always touching my forehead and holding my hand. She was always checking for a fever, or trying to comfort me. I was dying, and it made her sad.”

Jaejoong put down his knife and sighed, “If you were healing, and she touched you, evoking some kind of emotional response from you...”

“Pity,” Changmin answered quickly. “I felt sorry for her.”

“Just pity?”

“Yes, just pity,” Changmin confirmed. “I never saw any blue waters when I was with her. I mostly just felt numb to everything, but I could hear her…I know what she did for me.”

Jaejoong studied Changmin closely, already knowing what the young girl had sacrificed for him, but wanting to see if Changmin would tell him. “What did she do for you?”

Changmin turned away from Jaejoong quickly and stared at the wall. “She did too much…too much.”

“It’s very unlikely that you have bonded with her,” Jaejoong told Changmin, trying to ease his son’s mind.

Changmin turned back to Jaejoong with alarm written all over his face. “That isn’t possible, is it?”

“Since you are a hybrid, I am not sure of anything when it comes to you; but that you are still in your Joong form makes it very unlikely,” Jaejoong explained, as he poured his chopped vegetables into a frying pan.

“Good!”

“But…I know Ryeowook and Heechul were both amazed at her level of psychological healing, and you are drawn to her.”

“I can’t even heal myself! How could I heal her?”

“I told you; healing a mate or a child is easier than healing yourself.”

“I was dying on Belara! I hadn’t even healed myself! How could I have healed her?” Changmin sputtered, refusing to entertain the possibility.

“You would have done it on the ship.”

“On the ship,” Changmin gulped, remembering all too well how he had reacted when he found out she was on the ship.

“I know that before Heechul lost his sanity he went from thinking her wounded psyche might never heal…to thinking quite the opposite; he suspected and Ryeowook agrees with him that you had something to do with it.”

Changmin laid his head down on the table, unable to bear looking at Jaejoong. “They do?”

“Yes, they do,” Jaejoong confirmed. “I’m not convinced though. In order for a Joong to heal nonrelatives they must be bonded to them, and you most certainly do not act like a bonded Joong.”

“I’m not bonded,” Changmin insisted, talking with his face resting against the table, his lips brushing against the surface of the table. “I just think she is nice, and I like her, but I don’t want to do anything with her.”

“Anything?” Jaejoong asked. “Anything like what?”

“You know.”

“I want you to say it.”

“No.”

“Say it.”

“I don’t want to do anything sexual with her…you know what I mean!”

“Yes, I know.”

“So I’m not bonded,” Changmin said hopefully, lifting his head from the table to look at his Joong parent.

“Probably not…because bonded Joongs do like sex,” Jaejoong explained. “But…so do young human males, and you have never exhibited any normal human interest in sex either.”

“It’s because I’m asexual. I’m evolved past those primal urges,” Changmin quickly explained.

Jaejoong snorted. “You had your birth parent/child bond ripped from you when you were only a toddler, you were sent back in time, and you had your Joong half submerged for almost the entirety of your life. Your true growth has been stifled for decades; you are just now discovering who you really are.”

Changmin took in Jaejoong’s words, knowing they were true. “You might be right, but I’m not bonded.”

“No, not in the traditional full blooded Joong sense, but you are a mystery.”

Changmin reached back and squeezed his neck feeling stressed. “On second thought, maybe we should invite Yunho to eat.”

“No, I don’t want to fight with him, and I know he doesn’t want to fight with me,” Jaejoong told Changmin as he stirred their food, allowing Changmin to change the subject. “But you can take him food, and eat with him.”

Changmin smiled, thankful that Jaejoong was going to have mercy on him. He’d had enough of this conversation for now, and needed to be with his father. “Computer, where is the location of the captain?”

“The location of Captain Yunho is private,” the computer immediately answered.

Both of Changmin’s eyebrows arched in surprise, not expecting that answer, and he questioned the computer further, “Computer, the captain’s location is private to whom?”

“To all but his active senior officers,” the computer stated efficiently.

Jaejoong, who was dishing the food out, looked at Changmin. “You are not currently an active senior officer.”

“No, so it won’t tell me,” Changmin frowned, not used to the ship’s computer not obeying his every whim. “But you know where he is, right?”

Jaejoong shook his head. “No, I’m blocking that part of our bond.”

“So he could be off the ship?”

“He better not be off the ship,” Jaejoong groused as he set the dishes full of food down on the table.

Changmin inhaled the scent of the food, but instead of eating asked, “So what are you aware of? If you have the bond blocked to the point of not knowing where he is?”  
“Emotions; if he felt extreme emotions I would know, and also if he experienced any pain, I would know,” Jaejoong explained. “I don’t know where he is, but I do know he is perfectly fine.”

Changmin decided to end the speculation and tapped his insignia. “Yunho, where are you?”

“Changmin, that would be none of your business at the moment,” Yunho immediately answered.

“I require you,” Changmin told his father.

“Are you injured, or despondent? Is the ship in danger? Is anybody else in danger?” Yunho asked, and Changmin and Jaejoong could both hear Kangin laughing in the background.

“No,” Changmin admitted.

“Then you can require me later,” Yunho answered, ending the communication.

Changmin stared up at Jaejoong and pointed out confidently, “I can make the computer tell me…if you would just allow me to make some minor adjustments.”

“That won’t be necessary.”


	3. Flying Vermin

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Family jewels are threatened! Sungmin had a jealous fit over Siwon! Changmin fears he has bonded with Sulli! Eunhyuk searches for hookers! Yoochun and Junsu spend quality time together! Yunjae's special time on the beach with their son is interrupted by flying vermin!

“You are so mean to your kid,” Yoochun told Yunho as he placed keepsakes into a box.

Yunho shook his head as he stared at an aquarium that was built into the wall of the quarters they were in. “I’m not mean to him. I want this to be a surprise.”

“You’re just lucky there was an automatic feeder built into this aquarium or you would have killed the captain’s fish,” Kangin said from beside him as they stared at the huge colorful fish that had previously belonged to Captain Seung.

“I doubt the computer would have allowed them to die without alerting us,” Yunho pointed out.

“True, it gives out warnings when plants need watering,” Yoochun reminded them as he placed the late captain’s family pictures into a box. “I don’t know why you require our assistance to move this stuff out.”

“It isn’t stuff…it was Captain Seung’s personal belongings,” Yunho explained as he looked around the quarters that had belonged to the previous captain of the ship. “To just assign somebody to do it would be wrong.”

“It is a darn shame that he had to die,” Kangin said as he moved away from Yunho to start packing stuff away. “He was a good man.”

“That he was, and I thought we could handle this respectfully,” Yunho added.

Yoochun rolled his eyes. “Respectful as one can be, especially one who is just doing this for the sole purpose of returning to their mates good sexual graces.”

“Must everything be about sex to you? You realize that someday Changmin will be born, and my quarters are not adequate for a baby. This is much better,” Yunho reasoned.

“Baby Changmin,” Kangin said with a grin. “Hey, I get to be a godfather right?”

“Maybe,” Yunho replied as he started placing the late captain’s personal items into boxes. “Definitely not Yoochun though.”

“I’m so hurt,” Yoochun said with a roll of his eyes. “I will just serve as the bad influence.”

“You’ve tried that before and failed,” Yunho reminded him.

“Yeah,” Yoochun admitted. “I’ve never been able to lead the Jung boys down the wrong path.”

“Nope, you are Yunho’s bitch in this reality,” Kangin snickered. “You have been his bitch since the day we all met up at the academy entrance exams.”

“Hey! I chose to follow him and his boring ways of righteousness,” Yoochun told Kangin, sounding offended. “Having him as my best friend adds to my mystery.”

“And I’m eternally grateful for your friendship,” Yunho told him as he stared at the prior captain’s sword display on the wall. “Should I take them down, too?”

Yoochun finished packing one box and looked up at the sword collection “Yeah, it isn’t yours, and Jae might get pissed at you one night, and decide to cut off certain parts of your anatomy.”

Yunho frowned at Yoochun. “He wouldn’t…” Yunho paused remembering Jaejoong’s complaints about getting pregnant. “Yeah, they need to go.”

Yoochun and Kangin shared a knowing grin. “Really…are the family jewels in danger?” Kangin couldn’t keep from asking.

Yunho shrugged at his two oldest friends, and answered, “He isn’t really in love with the whole getting pregnant thing…not at all.”

“I don’t really blame him,” Kangin said, wincing in sympathy at the thought.

Yoochun grabbed a sword and started packing it away. “You know, if he really wants to castrate you, he’ll find a way.”

“Thank you! Thank you so much! That’s just what I wanted to hear,” Yunho grumbled as he grabbed another sword off the wall.

Kangin, who had sat down in a chair, smiled and asked, “Did either of you ever think we would be here talking about Yunho getting his male mate pregnant?”

“Hey, he’s a hermaphrodite,” Yunho said, correcting Kangin.

“I’m not shocked at all. Remember, he did lose his virginity at the ripe old age of fifteen to a he/she prostitute on Risa. He’s just been suppressing his inner self for all these years,” Yoochun reminded them with a mischievous grin.

“It was a she, and she wasn’t a prostitute!” Yunho sputtered, surprised that the old encounter was suddenly being brought up.

“I remember the gender being a little iffy. What matters most is that you paid for it. No way did that one let your inexperienced ass have it for free,” Kangin said with full admiration as he remembered back on the days of their youth.

“I can’t really remember her face for some reason,” Yoochun said, confused. “But that was the hottest piece of ass I ever laid eyes on. I wish I’d had the money to pay for it. I had always heard about Risa prostitutes, but hearing is not the same as seeing.”

“I did not pay for it! She just liked me!” Yunho insisted, remembering back to a most pleasant time. “Liked me a whole lot, and it was amazing.”

“You had a big smile plastered on your face for days afterwards, lucky dog,” Yoochun said, smiling at Yunho as the captain relived an old, enjoyable memory.

“To think I lost my virginity to Kimini Kauera,” Kangin groused. “I heard she dropped out of the academy to take up intergalactic banking. My first time was with a banker.”

Yunho sat down on the floor with a huge smile on his face, ignoring Kangin. “Even now it’s like a blur of this most perfect time. I was so young…too young; but damn, did I learn a lot.”

“Was it the best sex you ever had?” Yoochun asked with a wink, trying to paint Yunho into a corner.

“No!” Yunho quickly answered. “I mean, it was good. I was very young and eager, but sex with Jaejoong is the best by far.”

“Might you be lying?” Yoochun suggested.

“Because you fear for the safety of your family jewels?” Kangin added.

“No, I mean…no…it’s like a blur. Nothing compares to what Jaejoong and I share,” Yunho proclaimed uneasily and quickly stood back up. “Let’s get these swords packed away.”

“I do believe he protests too much,” Kangin said with a grin.

“I do believe you are right,” Yoochun teased, but the old friends let the subject drop, and continued to pack away the late captain’s items.

Moments later the computer let out a ringing noise letting them know somebody was at the door. Yunho stared at the door, alarmed, and turned to his two friends and hissed, “I swear, if Jaejoong heard you two and your filthy minds…then the two of you will be cleaning the hanger deck with a toothbrush!”

“Us?” Yoochun asked, shocked. “I do believe you are the one bonded with him.”

“Yeah,” Kangin agreed from his chair. “He probably felt you remembering the good old days…vividly.”

“I know when he reads my mind!” Yunho snapped back at them, and reluctantly walked to the door and ordered, “Open.” The door whooshed open and relief flooded Yunho as he saw Changmin standing at the entryway, holding two big dishes of food. “Changmin.”

Changmin walked into the official captain’s quarters, studying them intently. “Are we moving in here?”

“Well, hopefully you will be back in your own quarters soon, but baby you will live here,” Yunho answered as he looked out into the hallway. “Where is your guard?”

“Mom said I didn’t need one.”

“You don’t?” Yunho questioned doubtfully.

“Nope,” Changmin answered, holding the food protectively. “Mom is focusing on Kangin and Yoochun’s minds, so he would know if I didn’t show up.”

“Shit,” Yoochun groaned.

The captain glared at his two friends. “Sorry,” Kangin said weakly as he got up from the chair.

Changmin sat down in the seat that Kangin had vacated, and told Yoochun and Kangin, “Mom told me to tell you two to leave, and if you ever bring up the Risa whore again…he won’t require a sword to remove your ‘family jewels’ because you won’t have the brain capacity to know what do with them.”

Yoochun bit his tongue, and Kangin wrapped a hand around Yoochun’s arm, sensing the engineer was about to explode. “We are going to be going now.”

“You guys don’t have to leave…I’m the captain of this ship,” Yunho told his old friends, slightly embarrassed that his mate had eavesdropped on them.

Yoochun, who was not pleased about the invasion of his privacy, reminded Yunho, “Only because Jaejoong allows you to be captain. I think we know where the real power on this ship lies, and I pray he never really gets angry at you. God help us all if he does.”

“Shut up!” Kangin ordered as he pushed Yoochun through the door. “You are purposely antagonizing him. When you suddenly think you’re a eunuch, don’t come crying to me.”

“I don’t give a shit, and he can read this thought if he-” Yoochun’s tirade was shut off as the doors to the quarters closed behind him.

Changmin watched as Yunho eyed the closed doors with a mixture of emotions showing on his face. “You should not let Commander Yoochun’s words get to you. Although the ship is at Jaejoong’s mercy…it is not power he craves.”

“Jaejoong now?” Yunho asked turning around to face his son. “Not mom?”

“He can not hear us now,” Changmin reminded Yunho. “It’s your love he craves.”

“He has my love,” Yunho said, sitting down on the floor in front of Changmin. “What did you bring me to eat?”

“I am not sure what it is called, but it smells delicious,” Changmin told Yunho as he got up from his seat and sat down on the floor beside Yunho.

“You haven’t tried it yet?”

“No, I was feeling conflicted.”

“Is this why you required me?” Yunho asked as he removed the cover on the delicious looking food and picked up the eating utensil that was nestled inside.

Changmin nodded his head. “Jaejoong, Ryeowook, and even Heechul before his lapse back into madness all think I have something to do with Sulli’s recovery.”

Yunho studied his son, who was obviously uncomfortable, and asked, “In what way?”

“They suspect that I might have aided in her mental recovery…she is not as damaged mentally as it was initially thought.”

“You are not bonded though…I mean, you’re not,” Yunho assured his son. “If you were bonded, you would know it.”

“Jaejoong agrees with you, but I’m a hybrid. I’m a mystery to even Jaejoong,” Changmin explained. “It would be illogical to assume that I will behave in the same way as a full blooded Joong.”

“Yes, that would be…” Yunho paused to smile. “Yes, that would be illogical.”

Changmin studied the smile on his father’s face. “I feel more like my old self with every passing hour. When I get overly emotional, I just reach inside myself and find my center easily now.”

“That is good, but I don’t want you to lose everything you’ve gained, though.”

“What do you mean?”

“I think you find more enjoyment in everything now…than you did before. I don’t want you to lose that sense of joy,” Yunho explained. “I mean, at times it’s very hard for me to see you doing things like skipping down the corridor, because seeing you behave so differently makes me miss the brilliant, snarky version of you; but I don’t want you to lose this sense of joy you have found.”

Changmin, who had started to eat, nodded his head. “I do feel more joy…but I still crave my logic. I just want to learn everything I can. I miss learning.”

Yunho bumped shoulders with Changmin gently. “Don’t be silly. You have learned so much lately. The change in you is amazing. You are always learning…it would be impossible for you to stop.”

“Ah, but learning about myself is different from learning about the universe.”

Yunho just shook his head. “If you are bonded to that girl in some way…that would not necessarily be a bad thing. I don’t want you to think of it as something bad.”

Changmin put his food down and frowned at Yunho. “How can you say that? I did not choose it.”

“No, but sometimes the things in life that get thrown at you…are thrown at you for a reason. She is your friend right now…a real friend to you. I have watched you two. Even when you were…forgive me, but even when you were completely loony-she calmed you.”

“I still do not want to be bonded!”

“No, but whatever bond you might have it isn’t anything like the one I have with Jaejoong. Maybe as a hybrid you heal others differently or maybe she is just unusually strong and there is no bond. Her parents were amazing people. It’s possible she just has very strong coping skills that they instilled in her. What’s important is that she is better, and I don’t think you should regret that.”

“No,” Changmin quickly agreed. “She deserves to be better. I do not have any romantic feelings for her.”

“See, it’s just friendship then. Believe me, you are mine and Jaejoong’s son; when you are bonded you are going to know it.”

Changmin frowned again. “I do not want to think about that.”

“Now, that’s my boy,” Yunho chuckled. “So, how angry is Jaejoong at me?”

“He is very controlled at the moment, but he did instruct me to tell you that you will be accompanying us to the planet tomorrow.”

Yunho tried to fight the dread he was feeling as he stared at the delicious food that Jaejoong had sent to him. “If this was my last meal, you’d tell me, right?”

Changmin laughed. “Yes, I would warn you.”

****************************************************

 

“Why don’t you just ask her if she knows any good hookers?” Junsu asked Eunhyuk with obvious disapproval as he pointed to the lady working the stand where Donghae was trying on masks. They were at the street market outside the rebel outpost.

“Don’t sound so judgmental, it’s an honest line of work.”

“What is an honest line of work?” Donghae asked as he left the stand after purchasing a couple of masks.

“Prostitution,” Eunhyuk explained.

Donghae handed his masks to Junsu, who was eager to look at them. “I wouldn’t know. No man in my family has ever had to pay for it,” Donghae said proudly.

Eunhyuk frowned, annoyed at the transporter chief, and changed the subject, “Let’s get something to eat.”

“Okay,” Junsu agreed. Junsu handed the masks back to Donghae and told him, “They are really nice.”

“They are going to be great for the Halloween Party,” Donghae explained. “I think I will use them as wall decorations. I already know what I’m wearing, and I don’t need a mask.”

“Are you still on about that?” Eunhyuk grumbled as he headed toward a shop that was selling sweets.

“Yes, no thanks to you. You are absolutely no help to me…at all. It’s going to be in Ten Forward.”

“Really?” Junsu replied, more interested now as they walked into the shop. “The captain let you use Ten Forward?”

“Yep, the captain and I go way back,” Donghae said with a confident grin. “I could use some help though… hint, hint,” Donghae said nudging Junsu with his elbow.

“Sorry, I’ve been busy teaching the rebel pilots how to fly their new ships,” Junsu said, apologizing. “I had to make time to even come down here for shore leave.”

Donghae nodded his head in understanding. “You are forgiven. I’ll find help, don’t worry.”

The three of them, who had unlimited funds thanks to the ships replicators, ordered some sweets after checking them with the tricorder to make sure they were safe to consume. They then left the shop, and continued to wander down the street that was filled with stands of people selling different kinds of products.

“What are those?” Junsu asked as shiny looking pink crystals caught his eye.

The three moved toward the stand holding the crystals. “They remind me of Changmin’s necklace,” Eunhyuk told them.

“They are the same color,” Donghae agreed as they all three stared down at crystals that were displayed in groups of three. They were each the size of a chicken’s egg.

Junsu reached down to touch one and a gloved hand immediately grabbed onto his wrist, stopping him. The hand belonged to a tall man with a long grey beard that was in charge of the stand. The man warned, “No touching…the Soul Tri Sphere links to those who touch them.”

“Links?” Junsu asked, frowning at the older man until he let go of him.

The man pulled one from his pocket and explained, “This is my very own. I’ve had it since I was a young boy. My two best friends have the other two. They have provided us with great protection throughout our lives. They have kept us out of the warlord’s clutches.”

“So, they are like good luck charms?” Eunhyuk asked.

“Exactly,” the man answered. “They were made by the great Joong race, and legend says they can only be sold in threes…to three different people.”

“These were made by the Joong race?” Junsu asked.

The man nodded his head eagerly. “Yes, a long time ago…that’s why they are so lucky. Joongs are the luckiest of all beings.”

“Have you ever met a Joong?” Eunhyuk asked, suddenly suspicious of the salesman. All aboard the Expectations knew how the races of this galaxy liked to throw around the Joong name, without ever having met one.

“No, not me, but I hear a Joong always carries one of these crystals with them,” the salesman explained.

“Really,” Junsu said, full of doubts now. He couldn’t imagine Jaejoong carrying around a lucky crystal. Junsu figured that the people of this galaxy held Joong’s in such high regard that saying something was made by Joongs increased its worth immensely. Money was not important to the crew of Expectations; they could make all the money, precious jewels, gold, and silver they wanted.

The salesman held his crystal up and said, “Look how beautiful it is…could a mere mortal make one?”

“We could synthesize a couple million of them on our ship,” Eunhyuk answered drily.

“Synthesize?” the man asked confused.

“Ignore him,” Junsu explained. “They are pretty. I think I want one.”

“Your two other friends also must agree to take one…they must be given to three people.”

Junsu turned to face Eunhyuk. “What do you think? Should we get them?”

“I need all the luck I can get,” Eunhyuk said with a laugh; he then turned toward Donghae, who wasn’t paying any attention to them. “Donghae, you want to go in with us?”

“Huh?” Donghae muttered not turning around to face his friend. He was focused on a young, blonde woman with short, sassy hair that was smiling at him from across the street.

Eunhyuk said nothing, suddenly consumed with jealously as he watched Donghae and the young woman smile back and forth at each other.

“Do you want to buy a…” Junsu paused and looked at the man and tried to remember what the man had called them. “A Soul Tri Sphere with us? We all three have to buy one or none of us can.”

“Umm…no, I am going to go get acquainted with…” Donghae paused smiling at the young woman. “Her.”

“What is it about him?” Eunhyuk whined as his friend walked off toward the attractive young woman. “Why do women flock to him?”

Junsu looked away from the pink crystals and answered, “He’s extremely handsome.”

“And I can’t even pay for it,” Eunhyuk moaned as he looked back down at the table. “Does this mean we can’t buy them?”

“Sorry,” the man said. “They must each have their own master, or they don’t work.”

“I think I might be able to help with that,” Yoochun said, shocking both the ensigns with his sudden appearance as he squeezed in between them at the stand and laid down a fortune in coins. He had been lurking behind them, eavesdropping on their entire conversation.

“What!” Junsu exclaimed taking a step away from Yoochun. “What are you doing here?”

Yoochun smiled at Junsu, ignoring Eunhyuk for the moment as he reached down and picked up a pink crystal. “I’m making it possible for you to buy one of these pretty little rocks.”

“They are crystals,” Junsu said, reaching out and grabbing his own.

Eunhyuk, who hoped that Yoochun was on his best behavior, picked up his crystal and added, “They are also good luck charms.”

“Oh, I pray they are,” Yoochun said, holding up his pink crystal and kissing it, while all the time eyeing Junsu hungrily.

Junsu, who looked sickened, harshly pointed out to Commander Yoochun, “There isn’t that much luck in this universe or in any universe for that matter.”

Yoochun leaned back. “Junsu, you wound me. I just wanted to spend the rest of shore leave with you, shopping. What happened to us being friends?”

“I am done with that delusion,” Junsu snapped back at Yoochun, and grabbed Eunhyuk by the arm. “Come on, Eunhyuk, let’s go.”

“Let’s not be harsh,” Eunhyuk said, pulling free of Junsu. He was very fearful of what might spill from the commander’s lips if he became angry.

“What?” Junsu asked, shocked at Eunhyuk’s response.

“Eunhyuk is completely capable of being rational. Oh, and I did pass a…let’s call it a gentleman’s club, about eight stands down. It’s in the red shop on the left,” Yoochun told Eunhyuk with a grin.

“See ya later!” Eunhyuk shouted as a huge smile spread out across his face, and he quickly took off.

Junsu hurried after Eunhyuk, grabbing him by the arm and stopping him. “You can’t leave me alone with him.”

“Then come with me! I only have forty-five minutes left. I have to hurry. Who knows when I will get the chance again,” Eunhyuk explained, disentangling himself from his best friend.

Junsu frowned in obvious disdain. “I’m not coming with you.”

“I don’t know what to tell you; it isn’t like he is going to hurt you. I’m sorry for being an awful friend, but I have to go now,” Eunhyuk pleaded, scrambling off.

Yoochun, who had listened to their exchange, told Junsu, “You know, I’m the one that should be mad.”

Junsu turned around to glare at the commander; whatever respect he had for Commander Yoochun had vanished long ago.

“We were having a really nice time together, and you just flipped out on me. If I can let it go, then you should be able to do the same.”

“You’ve let it go? Can you honestly say your intentions toward me are pure?”

“No, not in the pure sense…not what you call pure,” Yoochun admitted. “I want you. I always want you. I’m not going to lie, but I’m not going to force you into anything. I didn’t force you that night either. I just…it was the only chance I had, or might ever have. I took it.”

“Why can’t you just forget about me?” Junsu cried, completely frustrated. He hated this ongoing drama with Commander Yoochun. He wanted it to be over.

“I don’t know why! You think I enjoy having this fixation on you? Not even two weeks ago, I was freaking out with jealously because you were the tour guide for the ugly rebel women, and the captain actually asked me if I’d had a mental examination lately,” Yoochun explained to Junsu, just as frustrated by his fixation on the younger ensign.

Junsu snorted. “The ugly rebel women you seem to be very fond of lately.”

“Because I can’t have you; if I could have you…” Yoochun paused, realizing what he was about to say.

“What?”

Yoochun looked Junsu in the eye and answered honestly, “I wouldn’t want anybody else.”

Junsu sighed and rubbed his face with both of his hands. “You only say that…because you can’t have me. You don’t even know me as a person-”

“Then let’s get to know each other! Maybe you will prove so boring and prudish that you will lose some of your appeal,” Yoochun interrupted, and offered quickly. “Spend the rest of shore leave shopping with me. I won’t make any passes at you. I swear on my engines…may their efficiency level drop by twenty percent if I’m lying.”

Junsu eyed Yoochun suspiciously but in the end he relented, “Okay, but if you pinch my ass one time, I am beaming back to the ship.”

“No pinching, I promise,” Yoochun said, grinning back at him.

****************************

Yunho stood waist deep in the ocean with his eyes fixated on the beach. He had no idea how long he had been staring, nor did he care. On the beach, sitting on the sand with his feet stretched out in front of him while he leaned back on his elbows looking up at the sky, Jaejoong was a vision of beauty to behold. He was wearing white, loose fitting cotton clothing that moved in the warm summer’s breeze along with his thick, beautiful black hair. The sunglasses he wore only added to his allure. Yunho was acutely aware that they had not had sex since the day Hyun Joong entered their lives, changing everything forever.

Painfully aware of their lack of intimacy, Yunho remembered back to the day everything had changed, and how nicely it had started out. He had taken the day off to celebrate their 180th day of being together. The day had started out with sweet, hot sex that had been ripe with passion and mutual love. How did they go from that level of wonderfulness to this? He missed Jaejoong, he missed Jaejoong’s body, and how it responded to his touches…his every desire.

“Yunho, reign it in!”

Yunho snapped out his fog of blissfulness to notice that Jaejoong wasn’t looking up at the sky any longer but watching him, clearly amused. That smile…that perfect smile, and damn if he didn’t look like he was born to sit on the beach. What Yunho would like to do to him on that beach…what kinds of scorching hot things they could do to each other on this beach, he could only imagine.

“Yunho, stop it! You are traumatizing Changmin!” Jaejoong ordered, sitting up straight. He was unable to hide the amusement in his voice as he felt his mate’s powerful attraction for him.

Yunho turned away from Jaejoong quickly to face his son, who was standing about four feet away from him in the water with a look of pure disgust on his face.

Yunho cringed. Today was all about Changmin, he reminded himself quickly. He had accompanied Jaejoong and Changmin to the planet to see how the human brain would hold up to Changmin with the necklace off. Yunho had not so much as felt a twinge of pain from being in his son’s presence. Yunho moved quickly toward Changmin and ducked him under the water, then looked back at Jaejoong accusingly. “You could have warned me.”

“I could have gone out there and whacked you on the head, but I don’t really think it would be safe for me to be around you, right now.”

“Probably not,” Yunho agreed, not bothering to blush. He was embarrassed for Changmin, but Jaejoong was more than aware of how attractive he found him. It was one of the downsides of having a telepath and an empath as your mate. Jaejoong could turn his telepathic powers off, but the empathy was always on.

Changmin, who had come up for air, attempted to get back at Yunho by pushing him under the sea water, but the older, more agile man easily avoided him. “I do not like my empathic abilities at all! They are vulgar and extremely distasteful.”

“So, just empathic?” Yunho said hopefully.

Changmin frowned, not wanting to know the specifics of his father’s thoughts. “Yes, and I wish you would keep your lustfulness to yourself. It’s quite discerning to feel my father’s lust for my mother.”

“I am not your mother,” Jaejoong yelled from the beach. “I’m your birth parent! There is a difference!”

“I’m sorry,” Yunho apologized to Changmin, ignoring Jaejoong’s denial of motherhood, just as Changmin did. “That would be…weird.” Yunho turned back to the beach as a horrible thought entered his mind. “You can’t turn your empathic ability off…does that mean Changmin won’t be able to turn it off either?”

“It’s extremely unlikely; he just needs to get over the fact that you are a horny bastard. He should be glad; it ensures his future existence.”

“I’m not glad,” Changmin stated with a scrunched up face that looked as if he had just inhaled a foul odor.

“I am not a horny bastard!” Yunho denied vehemently.

“Wh…wha…pppuufff,” Jaejoong sputtered on the beach, at a loss for words.

“Okay, horny maybe…okay, I’m horny right now, but I’m not a bastard!” Yunho yelled back at the man on the beach, amending his prior statement.

Jaejoong leaned back on his elbows and clarified for Yunho, “I am undergoing the first stage of shifting…to me you’re a bastard.”

Yunho growled at Jaejoong and threatened, “Just wait till you are in stage three and always wanting it! You are going to be out of luck! Nope, sorry, you won’t be getting any!”

Jaejoong snorted as if the thought of Yunho refusing him was the most absurd thing he’d ever heard.

“You wait, Jaejoong,” Yunho warned, pointing to his own firm, lean, muscular body. “You will be salivating for some of this, and I’ll tell you to kiss my ass.”

Jaejoong fell back on the sand laughing hard, but managed to say, “But Baby, you like it when I kiss your ass.”

“You two shut up!” Changmin screamed.

Yunho winced, not from pain, but embarrassment. Yunho turned to his red faced son, and vowed to himself he would ignore Jaejoong for the time being. “I really am sorry. Let’s have a swimming contest. I have lots of pent up energy.”

“Oh, I bet you do,” Jaejoong muttered under his breath from the beach as he ran his hand through his hair, fluffing it.

Changmin looked at Yunho, intrigued by the offer. “Perhaps now that my Joong abilities have emerged I will finally be able to beat you.”

This time it was Yunho who laughed. “So you think you inherited some great athletic ability from Jaejoong? Ha!”

Changmin looked back at his Joong parent, who was doing what could only be described as primping as he tried to catch his reflection by angling his sunglasses in front of him. “It is highly unlikely.”

“Hey, now!” Jaejoong yelled defensively from the beach. “I choose not to be an athlete. Why do I have to win races when I can make everyone think I won?”

“Such a cheater,” Yunho threw back at his mate.

Jaejoong lifted up his hand and aimed it toward Yunho and stopped to ask, “What finger is it that human’s flip toward each other in a sign of disrespect?”

“Read my mind,” Yunho said with a grin.

“I don’t think so…no mind reading, or touching,” Jaejoong coyly told Yunho as he flipped each finger in turn at him.

“When we get back to the ship, we are going to have a little talk. I think it’s time we move past this first stage of shifting,” Yunho told his mate. “I have had enough of this bullshit.”

Jaejoong stood up, alarmed, and warned, “You better not come near me when we get back to the ship. Do you hear me?”

“You are talking to the air. I’m done with this. Changmin is doing wonderfully; you can’t use him as an excuse anymore,” Yunho told Jaejoong, loving the look of fear…and something else in Jaejoong’s eyes…was it excitement?

“What are those?” Changmin asked in complete awe.

Yunho turned back toward his son that he had forgotten about once again, after vowing to focus on him. Changmin was looking up at the sky. What appeared to be large blue, yellow, and green butterflies were fluttering above him. “They are butterflies,” Yunho answered, full of amazement.

“They most certainly are not. They are mammals,” Changmin said as the butterfly looking creatures flew lower, some of them landing on Changmin and Yunho.

Yunho held up his arm, where one had landed. “It’s like a mouse with butterfly wings.”

“Crude description, but essentially correct,” Changmin replied as he inspected one of the creatures that had landed on the palm of his hand.

Jaejoong walked closer to the water’s edge and fussed, “Should you two be playing with strange animals? What if they bite? I’m not healing Yunho.”

Yunho, who now had five or six of the butterfly creatures on him turned toward his mate with accusing eyes. “What happened to timeless love? What happened to your vow to always heal me?”

Jaejoong clenched his fist, frustrated at his bondmate. “If Ryeowook or Changmin couldn’t heal you…then I would have to step in.”

Yunho turned back to Changmin surprised. “Can you heal people? I thought that was just a possibility.”

“No, I can not…because I did not heal Sulli! I’m not bonded to her! When Jaejoong bloodied my nose, and cut me, I was not able to heal myself, so it is doubtful I could heal others,” Changmin explained calmly as he continued to study the butterfly creatures.

Yunho looked back to Jaejoong, completely aghast. “You blooded his nose and you cut him? What the hell have you two been doing down here?”

The look of horror on Yunho’s face had Jaejoong quickly explaining himself. “I actually bloodied his nose on the ship, but he is the one who ran into the door…I just had it shut. And when I cut him, I was trying to teach him to heal himself! When he couldn’t heal himself, I healed him. It wasn’t a big cut!”

“Well, as long as it wasn’t a big cut!” Yunho shouted back at Jaejoong full of sarcasm. “How the hell does he even make it to be a two year old?”

Jaejoong kicked the sand in a little hissy fit. “You annoy me so much! I’m actually quite fond of him now! I’m teaching him an important skill! Don’t you want him to be able to heal himself?”

Yunho’s face instantly softened and he smiled at Jaejoong lovingly. “You are fond of him?”

Jaejoong’s mood instantly brightened as he was flooded with Yunho’s love and happiness. He couldn’t keep from smiling back at his mate, and acknowledged, “Yes, except for when he calls me mom…that really pisses me off.”

“Why do all the flying vermin like you better than me?” Changmin complained, ignoring his parents’ moment. All the butterfly creatures had abandoned him to perch on Yunho; at least ten of them had landed on Yunho now.

Yunho, who was feeling like a tree all of a sudden, explained to Changmin smugly, “It’s because I have a good soul. Animals know.”

Changmin frowned and reached out and snatched one of the creatures that had perched on Yunho. “You probably give off some primitive scent that animals find familiar---OUCH!”

Yunho lunged toward Changmin and the butterfly creatures that had been perched on him went flying away. Yunho grabbed Changmin’s hand that was beginning to swell. “Why did you grab it like that? You know better than that. It bit you because you scared it.”

“I believe it stung me…I believe its tail had a stinger on it. Fascinating,” Changmin managed to get out as Yunho dragged him toward the beach, and toward Jaejoong.

“What did I tell you?” Jaejoong nagged as he walked out into the water to meet them. “I warned you not to be playing with strange animals!”

“Can you just heal him already?” Yunho asked as they approached Jaejoong. The hand was already swelling, doubling in size.

Jaejoong grabbed Changmin’s other arm, careful to keep from touching Yunho and informed them both. “I want him to heal himself.”

“I can’t do-”

“Yes, you can,” Jaejoong said, interrupting Changmin as they emerged from the surf. “Now sit down, find your center and heal yourself,” Jaejoong ordered as he forced Changmin down into a sitting position.

“What if it’s poisonous?” Yunho questioned, unable to hide his worry.

Jaejoong sat down next to Changmin, and looked at the red inflamed hand without touching it. “Full blooded Joongs are impervious to most poisons, so it must have been extremely poisonous to cause this reaction. Even the sedatives on the ship are quickly metabolized out his system and rendered useless.”

“But he’s half human,” Yunho reminded Jaejoong as he sat down on the other side of their son.

Jaejoong nodded his head, watching as Changmin kept his eyes closed trying to find his center. “That’s probably why the hand swelled up. The sting would probably have killed a human. Changmin has to start healing himself; the universe is a dangerous place for anyone of Joong blood. He has to learn to do this.”

“But haven’t you always said it’s easier to heal others than yourself?” Yunho asked.

“Yes,” Jaejoong agreed as he studied the hand. “This is just a minor injury though, and from poison. It should be easy to heal.”

Yunho reached out and took Changmin’s uninjured hand, and squeezed it. “Changmin, you can do it.”

Jaejoong watched them tenderly, and told Yunho, “You are such a good dad.”

Yunho smiled at Jaejoong, feeling the warmth. “You will be too.”

Jaejoong suddenly become aware of a couple of things, and jumped up and proclaimed, “I’m an idiot! Parent’s teach their children how to heal themselves…he just doesn’t remember how.”

Yunho looked up at Jaejoong startled. “Then sit down and show him how.”

“I can’t, because my bond with Changmin is broken,” Jaejoong explained. “Yunho, I know you don’t have the ability to heal yourself, but keep holding on to him and send him encouragement…you are bonded with him, it might help.”

“I find that completely illogical,” Changmin stated with his eyes shut tightly.

Jaejoong took a step back away from them. “Well, Joongs are not high on logic…we value other things. I’m going to beam back to the ship.”

“What? Why?” Yunho asked, alarmed.

“As long as I am here, our bond is the only one you are focused on,” Jaejoong explained.

“Err…that’s not completely true, but I get your point. Leave, but if it starts looking worse I’m taking him to Ryeowook.”

“No, you should bring him to me, but it isn’t going to get worse,” Jaejoong promised and hit his insignia. “One to beam up.”

 

***********************

“What do you think?” Sungmin asked Sulli as she toured her potential new quarters.

Sulli sat down on the small sofa in the living room of the quarters and smiled back at the security chief. “It’s nice. I know I can’t continue to live in sickbay.”

“You can stay in sickbay as long as you need to, but I thought these quarters might be nice for you. They used to be guest quarters, so they are a little more spacious. You get an extra bedroom.”

There was a table in front of the sofa with a green, leafy plant sitting on it. “I like the plant,” Sulli said, touching its leaves.

“I’m sure it would like somebody watering it regularly.”

Sulli laughed. “I am sure it would. Would I be able to make changes in the quarters?”

“Not you personally, but you can put your requests in and if environmental controls approves they would have the changes done for you,” Sungmin explained.

“That would be nice, but why are there two bedrooms?”

“Well, I thought that when we find Lieutenant Choi, she might like to stay with you,” Sungmin told the young woman who had endured so much.

Sulli squeezed her hands together, moved by Sungmin’s words. “Lieutenant Lee, that’s such a nice thing for you to consider. You really are a nice man. I think it’s a lovely idea. I would love to share these quarters with my cousin.”

“I thought you would,” Sungmin told her, smiling back at her. “I’m going to let you get more acquainted with your new home.”

“Thank you.”

“You are welcome,” Sungmin told her as he left the room, feeling very proud of himself. It was nice to know he could add some happiness to her life.

“You look very pleased with yourself.” Siwon, who was leaning against the wall outside of Sulli’s new quarters, told Sungmin.

Sungmin’s good mood vanished; he was not happy with the tall prince. “I was.”

“I assume you found young Miss Choi a nice place to live?”

Sungmin tried to keep from glaring at Siwon and failed. He turned and started walking down the corridor toward the lift. “You would assume correctly.”

Siwon pushed away from the wall and started following the other man. “I’m sensing some hostility directed at me.”

Sungmin clamped his mouth shut. Hostility? Yes, he was indeed hostile. Siwon had quit security without notifying him, and now he was all up in the rebel women’s business. No doubt, the fact that they were women outweighed the fact that they were ugly heifers. Sungmin knew he shouldn’t be jealous…knew perfectly well, but the last week had been confusing. Siwon had been so attentive to him. They had shared all their meals, and it was almost like they were a real couple. Sungmin could not forget the hug they had shared before the Expectations had hurried off to retrieve Kyuhyun. Sungmin had felt something, and he had thought Siwon had felt it too.

“Sungmin, please slow down and listen to me. You know diplomacy is my passion. I could not refuse when the captain asked me to take up a diplomatic post,” Siwon said as he took long strides to catch up with the other man.

“You could have asked me first.”

Siwon frowned, and questioned. “Doesn’t the captain have the final say on this ship?”

Sungmin came to a complete stop, reaching up to scratch his head. “Yes, of course. It’s just…I mean, it isn’t like you were some amazing security officer.”

“Now you are being unkind.”

Sungmin grimaced, realizing the truth of Siwon’s words. “Sorry. It’s just that I liked you being in security. I like being around you.”

Siwon, who was standing beside Sungmin now, looked down at him tenderly, and confessed, “I know you do, but it’s better this way.”

Sungmin groaned internally, knowing that Siwon was referring to his not so secret crush on the tall prince. “You are right, of course.”

“You are feeling embarrassed again.”

“A little bit. Are we done here? I really should be on the bridge.”

“I had wished to discuss another matter with you. Have you eaten? We could eat a late lunch together,” Siwon suggested.

Sungmin looked at Siwon, puzzled now. When he had first seen Siwon outside of Sulli’s quarters, he had thought that the prince might have been there to see the young woman. They had both been stranded on the same planet together, along with Ryeowook, Kangin, and Commander Leeteuk, before Hangeng had arrived and taken the girl to sell into slavery. Was it possible that Siwon had been searching for him instead? “I ate lunch in the gym hours ago. Were you looking for me?”

“Of course I was looking for you,” Siwon answered as if the question was ridiculous.

“Because you thought I was mad at you?”

“You were angry.”

“Oh…well, we settled that. What else do you want to talk to me about?” Sungmin asked curiously.

Siwon stepped closer to the lieutenant and said softly, for only Sungmin’s ears, “Now that I am not under your supervision, I would like the opportunity to date you.”

Sungmin felt his jaw drop open, and he stared at Siwon, shocked, and unable to say a word.

“I know I have told you repeatedly…that I am not attracted to men. I’m usually not, but I feel drawn toward you. I do not want to make promises that I can not keep, but if you are willing, then I would like the chance to explore the possibility,” Siwon explained.

Sungmin brightened instantly and lifting his jaw up off the floor, asked suggestively, “Would you like to go back to my quarters to do some exploring?”

“No,” Siwon said, shaking his head. “No, I don’t think that would be wise. I will not further complicate things by having sex with you again. I need to know this attraction I feel toward you is real, and not fleeting.”

Sungmin mood darkened slightly as the prospect of sex disappeared. “So, you really mean date…like date, date?”

“Yes, I care too much for you to toy with your feelings.”

Sungmin looked up at Siwon longingly and asked, “What if I don’t care if you toy with them?”

“Just dating for now, and I would love to escort you to the Halloween Party. I hope there will be dancing.”

“You know how to dance?” Sungmin asked, already knowing the answer.

“I’m a prince…I could dance before I could walk.”


	4. Soul Tri Sphere

“I think my new legs are slimmer than my old ones,” Shindong said proudly as he walked down the corridor along with Dr. Cho and Commander Cho. They were on their way back to sickbay.  
  
“Only from the knee down is new,” Kyuhyun reminded him.  
  
“I still feel thinner,” Shindong insisted.  
  
Ryeowook smiled at the two of them. He admired their new friendship that had been formed during the worst of times. “Shindong, are you even aware that you have lost 16kgs since you first arrived on the ship?”  
  
Shindong turned to face Ryeowook, shocked. “I have? How is that possible? I eat all the time. The food here is delicious.”  
  
“You can’t get fat on synthesized food,” Kyuhyun told Shindong with a grin. “Well, unless certain controls were disabled on the machine, but we really don’t want fat officers. We want healthy, fit officers on a starship.”  
  
“This ship is just amazing. I’m so glad I kidnapped your captain,” Shindong proclaimed, turning to face Kyuhyun. “I didn’t get my Joong, but I did pretty well for myself.”  
  
Kyuhyun reached up and wiped his face, and winced. “Now, if you just stop spitting every time you talk.”  
  
“Hey, you grow a new tongue and see how well you talk,” Shindong snapped back at him.  
  
Ryeowook laughed at the two of them as he entered sickbay. “I think I was the one that grew you that new tongue.”  
  
“Yes, you did, and you are forever my favorite doctor in any galaxy,” Shindong told Dr. Cho as he and Kyuhyun followed the doctor into sickbay.  
  
“But he still plays a poor second fiddle to me,” Heechul declared upon their arrival.  
  
Kyuhyun took in the vision of Heechul with his hot pink nursing scrubs and matching hair ribbons holding his ponytails in place, and couldn’t keep from teasing, “Everybody plays second fiddle to you. You’re marvelous.”  
  
“Kyuhyun! You will make your hubby jealous!” Heechul squealed, delighted with the compliment as he tugged on one of his ponytails.  
  
“I can barely restrain myself,” Ryeowook muttered under his breath, rolling his eyes at the two of them, and then focused on a very uncomfortable looking Eunhyuk, who had slowly entered sickbay behind them.  
  
Shindong took in the sight of Heechul and confessed, “I must admit that I forget you’re a dude half of the time.”  
  
Heechul gave Shindong a heated glare and declared, “That’s because I’m not a dude! I’m a princess!”  
  
“Eunhyuk, what’s wrong with you?” Dr. Cho asked the navigator, who looked to be in a great amount of pain.  
  
“Let me tell! Let me! Let me!” Heechul yelled, jumping up and down, full of excitement and unable to restrain himself from telling them, “Eunhyuk visited a house of sin while on shore leave, and now he has green purulent drainage and burning.”  
  
“How do you know that?” Eunhyuk asked, surprised that Heechul had guessed correctly.  
  
Heechul let go of his ponytail and waved his hand at Eunhyuk and explained, “Because I’m as brilliant as I am beautiful.”  
  
Ryeowook, who was frowning at Eunhyuk, asked Heechul, “No, really, how did you know?”  
  
Heechul sighed but reluctantly admitted, “Two other crew members just came in with those same symptoms after visiting the house of sin in question, and I know if there is a prostitute anywhere near his sniffing range, Eunhyuk will find her.”  
  
Kyuhyun snickered in the background at the truthfulness of Heechul’s words as he sat down on the sofa in the waiting area.  
  
“And where are the other two crew members?” Ryeowook asked, trying to keep a straight face.  
  
“I have them back in the exam rooms. I told them there was no cure and their penises were going to rot off,” Heechul happily informed Ryeowook.  
  
Ryeowook went up to the very embarrassed Eunhyuk, and took him by the arm and led him back toward the exam rooms, but stopped on his way to pat Heechul on the back, telling him, “Good work.”  
  
Heechul smiled proudly as Ryeowook led Eunhyuk away, and stated, “I think perhaps the ship should start passing out condoms before shore leave.”  
  
Shindong, who had started walking around in circles, stretching out his new legs, agreed, “That would probably be smart.”  
  
“What’s a condom?” Kyuhyun asked, having never heard of the word before.  
  
Shindong looked at Kyuhyun, completely taken aback that a man with such a reputation for sexual conquests hadn’t heard of a condom. “It’s what you wrap your dick up with so you don’t get shit like that.”  
  
“Wrap it up?” Kyuhyun said as if the idea was completely foreign to him. “Wrap it up…” Kyuhyun repeated as if the thought horrified him.  
  
Shindong tapped the universal translator that was implanted in his brain and asked, “Is it not working? How can you not know what a condom is?”  
  
“Humanity has not had the need for such things in hundreds of years once our medical science cured all known contagious diseases on earth and infertility implants were placed in newborns to prevent unwanted pregnancies…there was no need,” Heechul explained rationally, causing both Kyuhyun and Shindong to stare at him.  
  
“Dr. Kim?” Kyuhyun asked hopefully.  
  
Heechul waved his hands and quickly corrected him, “No, none of that. I am still fabulous me. I just have all his knowledge and sometimes it slips out.”  
  
“Yes, you are fabulous,” Sungmin quickly agreed as he practically pranced into sickbay. Since Siwon had asked to date him, Sungmin could not contain his good mood.  
  
Heechul eyed Sungmin suspiciously and asked, “Why are you so happy? What do you want?  
  
“I want you to help me, to help Donghae to plan the greatest Halloween Party this ship has ever seen,” Sungmin quickly explained to the always suspicious Heechul.  
  
Heechul’s eyes immediately lit up. “A party! I love parties!”  
  
Shindong sat down next to Kyuhyun with both eyes on Sungmin and Heechul and asked, “Halloween?”  
  
“One of my most favorite Earth holidays…Well, right after Christmas,” Kyuhyun explained.  
  
“It’s going to be in Ten Forward, and I think there should be dancing,” Sungmin said purposely, knowing it would set Heechul’s heart a flutter.  
  
“Dancing!” Heechul swayed on his feet as if he could hear the music already. “I love dancing! I can dance with my prince.”  
  
Sungmin swallowed nervously. “Of course you can.”  
  
Something in Sungmin’s tone had the extremely observant Heechul immediately suspicious. “You are spending a lot of time with my prince!”  
  
“He feels sorry for me…because I’m so sad and pathetic,” Sungmin offered up quickly, letting any pride he had fall to the side.  
  
Heechul turned to look at Kyuhyun, who was sitting on the sofa, and agreed with Sungmin, “Yes, you are pathetic, and my prince would have mercy on you. He’s such a merciful, handsome prince.”  
  
“And you’re his favorite girl,” Sungmin pointed out.  
  
“Yes, I am!” Heechul agreed, and then dismissed his jealously with a wave of his hand. “We are going to dress up! We have to dress up!”  
  
“Absolutely,” Sungmin agreed.  
  
Heechul’s eyes widened as an idea took root in his mind. “Oh, I just thought of the perfect dress!”  
  
“What kind of dress?”  
  
“It will be my perfect princess dress! You can’t know what it looks like! Nobody can! It has to be a secret!” Heechul declared, his head spinning with ideas. “Oh, I will make everybody dress up…just like I want them! It will be glorious! I will find you later, so I can tell you what to do!” Heechul yelled back at Sungmin as he hurried from the sickbay, eager to make plans regarding his dress.  
  
“So are you and Siwon an item?” Kyuhyun asked from the sofa after watching Sungmin with Heechul. Kyuhyun knew that Ryeowook had suspicions about the two of them, and after that exchange, Kyuhyun had them too.  
  
Sungmin walked up to be closer to Kyuhyun and Shindong and shrugged. “Sorta…maybe…might be someday…I hope.”  
  
Kyuhyun smiled, happy for Sungmin. “Well, let’s hope he is better than that last loser you were with.”  
  
Sungmin smiled down at Kyuhyun. “He wasn’t a loser. He was actually a really great guy…he just wasn’t meant for me.”  
  
“We definitely make better friends,” Kyuhyun told Sungmin, relieved that the awkwardness between them was finally dissipating.  
  
“Definitely better as friends,” Sungmin agreed. “Are you doing okay?”  
  
Kyuhyun nodded his head and answered honestly, “I’m getting better everyday, but it will take time.”  
  
“If there is anything you need, you only have to ask,” Sungmin told Kyuhyun as Eunhyuk stepped back into the main entrance of sickbay, looking much better after Dr. Cho had attended to him.  
  
“Sungmin! Who told you?” Eunhyuk asked in dread. He had already gotten chewed out royally by Dr. Cho; he didn’t need another chewing out.  
  
“Told me what?”  
  
“Nothing, nothing at all,” Eunhyuk responded quickly as he pulled out his pink crystal from his pocket and clutched it, praying for luck.  
  
Sungmin peered closely as his friend, sizing him up instantly. “Tell me you didn’t catch something else from another whore. Were the purple warts not enough?”  
  
“Don’t judge!” Eunhyuk said, sulking; He hated that Sungmin knew him so well. “It wasn’t only me this time. And she was at least human,” Eunhyuk told them as he laid the pink crystal down on a small table beside the sofa where Kyuhyun sat.  
  
“What’s that?” Kyuhyun asked, eyeing the pink crystal.  
  
“I bought it while on shore leave. It was supposed to be for good luck, but it’s useless,” Eunhyuk told them bitterly. “It sure as hell hasn’t brought me any good luck.”  
  
Sungmin walked up and grabbed Eunhyuk by his shirt collar, and dragged him toward the exit. “Come to think of it, we are long overdue a talk about you and your bad choices!”  
  
Kyuhyun watched, amused, as Sungmin dragged Eunhyuk from sickbay. Shindong, who had been pondering something since the subject of the party came up, asked Kyuhyun, “How can you have a dance on this ship when there is only one girl on the ship? Well, two if you count Heechul.”  
  
“Men can dance together.”  
  
“I do not want to dance with a man, but I do want to test out my new legs.”  
  
“I’m hurt,” Kyuhyun told Shindong, trying to look disappointed.  
  
“You will get over it,” Shindong assured him. “I will do my own thing on the dance floor.”  
  
“Should I be scared?”  
  
“Actually, I used to have some pretty slick moves.”  
  
“Hello, Kyuhyun, Shindong,” a very pleased looking Changmin said, greeting them as he entered sickbay.  
  
“Hello to you,” Kyuhyun replied back to the happy looking Changmin. “What’s new?”  
  
“I now have the ability to heal myself without almost dying,” Changmin informed them proudly as he walked over to the sofa where they sat and held out his left hand. “On Altanguerel I got stung by a flying mammal that also exhibited arthropod features. My hand swelled approximately 2.4 times its actual size; and with the power of my Joong blood…with a little assistance from Yunho, I completely healed myself.”  
  
Kyuhyun reached out and took Changmin’s hand to examine it. “With Yunho’s help? Are you sure you don’t mean your mom’s help?”  
  
“No, my mom had already beamed back to the ship, fearful of my lecherous father. Yunho used our parent/child bond to enhance my powers, and after one hundred and ninety-seven minutes I was healed completely.”  
  
“Your lecherous father?” Kyuhyun repeated, stunned at Changmin’s words as he let go of Changmin’s hand. Kyuhyun realized that Changmin was the first person—after Ryeowook—that he had initiated physical contact with.  
  
Changmin nodded his head as he lifted his hand up to exam it proudly. “Yes, my mom refuses to resume sexual activities with him, and he was not handling his lustful urges in a respectful way. They would not allow me to wear the necklace, so I was repeatedly exposed to his animalistic desires.”  
  
“I didn’t know Joongs could say no to their mate. Nobody ever tells you that,” Shindong said sadly, as another of his Joong delusions was shattered. “It would suck if you got one and you thought you were going to get laid for the rest of your life, but no such luck. Instead you get this mate who can read your mind, so there isn’t any hope of getting any on the side.”  
  
Changmin shook his head. “It’s just the shif…where is Sulli? She will be excited for me—unlike you two.”  
  
“Hey, I am very excited for you. Will you always need to be in contact with Yunho to heal yourself?” Kyuhyun replied quickly, catching Changmin’s slip up but letting it slide.  
  
“No,” Changmin assured them. “I wanted to cut myself and practice healing by myself, but Yunho forbid it.”  
  
“Damn that dad of yours,” Kyuhyun said, laughing.  
  
“Tomorrow Mom said that others get to go to the planet with us,” Changmin informed Kyuhyun. “Since, I didn’t hurt Yunho.”  
  
Kyuhyun smiled weakly. “Doesn’t Yunho have stronger mental shields than regular people because of his repeated exposure to you and Jaejoong?”  
  
“Perhaps, that’s why we are only taking volunteers. Of course, Ryeowook will not be allowed to go with us—we can’t have the doctor brain damaged…again,” Changmin explained as the pink crystal on the table caught his attention.  
  
“I am not volunteering for that field trip,” Shindong responded, looking appalled at the mere thought.  
  
“That’s unfortunate because I really need to practice on a human from this galaxy,” Changmin replied to Shindong, but his eyes were glued to the crystal.  
  
“Well, too bad. I have had enough shit happen to me,” Shindong answered gruffly. “I am not going to volunteer for more.”  
  
“That is perfectly understandable,” Changmin answered as he reached for the crystal and picked it up. The crystal started to glow the second he touched it. “What is this?”  
  
“Eunhyuk got it on the rebel outpost. It was supposed to be for good luck, but he said it was worthless,” Kyuhyun informed Changmin.  
  
“It looks to be made up of the same crystals as my necklace,” Changmin said as he held the crystal up, examining it.  
  
“It does,” Shindong agreed, getting up to inspect the crystal that was glowing in Changmin’s hand. “Actually I think that’s a STS.”  
  
“STS? What does that stand for?” Changmin immediately asked.  
  
“Soul Tri Sphere,” Shindong answered. “They are found randomly on planets in this galaxy. A lot of people claim they were made by the Joong race. I have never heard of them glowing before.”  
  
“Do you think the Joong race really made them?” Changmin asked the space trader.  
  
Shindong shook his head. “No, a lot of people claim items were made by the Joongs so they can sell them at higher prices.”  
  
“I need to get in one of my science labs; this looks to consist of the same substance as the necklace. I wish to examine it further,” Changmin said, longing for his lab.  
  
Kyuhyun got up from the sofa. “I will go with you. I can be your guard.”  
  
“I no longer require a guard, but I know Yunho would not approve of me going to my lab unattended. If you were with me, it should be fine though,” Changmin said, mostly to himself, as he headed out of sickbay, entranced by the crystal.  
  
Kyuhyun looked down at Shindong and asked, “You mind telling Ryeowook where I am going? He’s a little protective of me lately.”  
  
“No problem,” Shindong answered as he watched Kyuhyun follow Changmin out of sickbay.  
  
******************************  
  
Sungmin pushed Eunhyuk inside his small quarters and declared, “We need to talk.”  
  
“Actually we don’t,” Eunhyuk informed his bossy friend and tried to step around him. Unfortunately for Eunhyuk, his bossy friend was a martial arts expert who easily kept him in the room. The door to the quarters shut and Eunhyuk groaned knowing there was no avoiding the confrontation now.  
  
“Not so quick,” Sungmin told him, hands firmly on hips as he prepared to lecture his oldest friend. Sungmin watched as Eunhyuk’s expression changed from one of dread to one of surprise.  
  
Eunhyuk, who had been trying to flee just moments ago, looked at Sungmin very confused and said in shocked voice, “Sungmin?”  
  
“Yes, that’s my name,” Sungmin told his friend as he pushed him back toward the bed.  
  
“How did I get here?” Eunhyuk asked as he stumbled back on to the bed, looking more confused by the second.  
  
“You have got to be kidding me. If you think you can fake amnesia it isn’t going to work. I know what you did,” Sungmin informed the other man.  
  
“Fake amnesia?” the ensign asked again, tilting his head as if his own voice sounded off to him.  
  
“Yes, fake!”  
  
“Was I beamed here?”  
  
“Beamed here? I told you I’m not falling for any of your games so don’t even try,” Sungmin told him, more displeased by the second.  
  
The ensign shook his head and got up from the bed again and deplored, “Sungmin, I promise you I am not playing any games. What is going on?”  
  
Sungmin pushed him back down on the bed, “We are here to talk about what went on in the past! What you did! You can avoid me all you want, but I know you slept with Yoochun!”  
  
“I did not!” the other man screamed, jumping up from the bed completely scandalized.  
  
Sungmin looked at his friend as if he had gone crazy. “Eunhyuk, don’t deny it! Yoochun admitted everything to me! I know you slept with him when he was in the body of a woman!”  
  
“Eunhyuk,” the other man repeated as he made his way to the mirror in the quarters. “Eunhyuk?”  
  
“You are starting to piss me off. Don’t play stupid. We are going to talk about it. Right now! There is no avoiding it!”  
  
“Oh, God…I…he,” Eunhyuk gasped after making his way to the mirror. He just stared at his reflection, thunderstruck.  
  
“Yes, I know. He told me everything. Do you know he used you? Junsu refused him that night, and he was using you to spite Junsu. Did you know you were being used to hurt one of your best friends? Your oldest friend!”  
  
Eunhyuk, who had not looked away from the mirror, just shook his head.  
  
“Luckily his conscience got the better of him and he didn’t run and tell Junsu, but what if he does? You have to tell Junsu first. Junsu can’t hear this from Yoochun. He needs to hear it from you. Although you like to deny it, Junsu has feelings for Yoochun.”  
  
The ensign turned away from the mirror. “You think…you think I…you think Junsu cares for Yoochun?”  
  
“Duh, it is obvious to everybody but you. You think everybody should be as heterosexual as you are.”  
  
The other man’s legs were suddenly unsteady as he carefully made it back to the bed. “Everybody knows?”  
  
Sungmin’s annoyance dissipated as he looked at his clearly distraught friend. “I don’t know if everybody knows, but most people know that Junsu and Yoochun have something complicated going on between them.”  
  
“Complicated… Why can’t it just be complicated because Commander Yoochun is a big, stupid jerk? I mean what decent person would care about him?”  
  
Sungmin sat down on the bed beside his friend and wrapped a comforting arm around him. Eunhyuk looked devastated and Sungmin had not expected that. “You really didn’t know? I’m sorry for jumping on you, it’s just that I think—I know—Junsu would be hurt if he found out.”  
  
The ensign let out a bitter laugh and agreed, “You are right about that.”  
  
“I know Yoochun is an asshole, but he’s more than that too. Yoochun is a very complicated person. Don’t judge Junsu harshly, you can’t help who you care about; and Junsu hasn’t given in to his feelings, and he might never.”  
  
“He won’t—shouldn’t—but it isn’t so easy. I know Junsu likes girls, but then there are days when Yoochun is so charming and it’s like everything gets mixed up inside. Like shopping at the street market today—that was actually nice. He didn’t behave badly at all, and it was fun.”  
  
Sungmin looked confused now. “You shopped with Yoochun today? Was this before your excursion to the whorehouse?  
  
“I guess you could say it was during it,” the other man told Sungmin, looking guilty.  
  
“How is that even possible? Did Yoochun go with you to the whorehouse?” Sungmin asked and then he paled even more. “Please tell me you two don’t have some kinky thing going on still?”  
  
“No! It wasn’t anything like that. Yoochun didn’t go to a whorehouse…that I know of. I have something I need to tell you.”  
  
“What?” Sungmin asked nervously, not sure if he wanted to know.  
  
“It’s going to sound really insane.”  
  
Sungmin reached out and squeezed his friend’s shoulder and tried his best to sound reassuring, “Eunhyuk, you can tell me anything.”  
  
“This is going to sound crazy, but before you tossed me on the bed…I was piloting a ship.”  
  
“No, you weren’t,” Sungmin informed him. “You were in sickbay getting treated for some venereal disease you picked up from some whore.”  
  
The other man swallowed nervously at Sungmin and told him, “I’ve never had a venereal disease before, and I’ve never been to a whorehouse. I’m Junsu. I don’t know how it is possible but I just suddenly found myself in Eunhyuk’s body.”  
  
  
********************  
  
  
Eunhyuk’s surroundings shifted, and he suddenly found himself in a bed in a sparsely lit room on top of some naked woman. He shook his head, fighting the feeling of lightheadedness, and realized his cock was buried inside the woman who was underneath him.  
  
“Don’t stop!” the woman begged as her nails cut into his back.  
  
Alarmed, Eunhyuk looked down at the woman and recognized her as Nesala, one of the female rebels. For only a few seconds, Eunhyuk allowed himself to wonder how he had gotten so lucky. He didn’t know how he got in bed with her, but he wasn’t about to waste the opportunity that had been handed to him. He could get his memory loss checked out later. Now was not the time for thinking, he told himself as he started thrusting energetically.  
  
The woman underneath him moaned, delighted with his renewed enthusiasm. “Harder, harder, harder,” she cried. “Yes! Yes! Yes!”  
  
Eunhyuk thrust harder and harder, not one to disobey a lady.  
  
************************  
  
  
Jaejoong stood inside the prior captain’s quarters that were now his and Yunho’s. Hours had passed and he stood staring at the aquarium setting inside the wall, watching the beautiful fish of many colors as they swam peacefully through the water. Memories of the planet of his birth had surfaced in his mind, reminding him that it was not his people’s way to disobey the desires of their hearts. Bonded Joongs followed only one path, and that was the path of love—love they shared with the one they were bonded to. He had rejected his heritage by ignoring his bondmate for so long.  
  
The doors to the quarters opened and the Yunho stepped inside. At first Yunho didn’t say anything; he just stood still, watching Jaejoong.  
  
Jaejoong stood transfixed in front of the tank, refusing to meet Yunho’s gaze. The anger was gone and instead there was only fear—terrible, unbearable fear of the tragic future they shared.  
  
“Changmin was finally able to heal himself. I honestly don’t think I had anything to do with it.”  
  
“You underestimate the strength of your support. Your love and support have always guided him. You have always been a good friend to him, and perhaps friendship is the strongest bond you two share.” Yunho took a step closer and Jaejoong’s hand flew up and he ordered, “Don’t! Please don’t.”  
  
“Jaejoong, this…this isn’t right. This distance between us, it isn’t right,” Yunho told his mate, but respected his mate’s wishes and stopped his approach.  
  
Jaejoong closed his eyes and asked Yunho desperately, “Don’t you think I know that? I am acutely aware of that every second of the day.”  
  
“Then why do you insist on keeping us apart? I know if we just reconnected with each other this anger from the shifting would be gone. Or is it more? I’m sorry I ever put that necklace on.”  
  
“I have forgiven you for wearing the necklace, or I have tried my best to, but can you say the same? Have you forgiven me for lying to you?”  
  
“Yes, I have. I accept that you did not do it in malice, that you thought you were protecting us,” Yunho answered honestly. “I just know that I miss you. Missing you cancels out any sense of betrayal I might have felt before.”  
  
Jaejoong kept his eyes squeezed shut and wrapped his arms around his chest and hugged himself tightly. “I just can’t…I’m too afraid.”  
  
Yunho sighed, misunderstanding his mate. “Jaejoong, the fact that Changmin exists is a fact. You are the one that preaches that time can’t be altered. It’s not that I don’t understand your dislike…heck, I’m really glad that I’m not the one that has to give birth to him, but what can you do about it?”  
  
Jaejoong turned to face Yunho now. “You think my fear comes from the thought of being with child?”  
  
“Umm…you did preach the horrors to me. You were really convincing,” Yunho reminded Jaejoong.  
  
“That was mostly the shifting… Not that I’m looking forward to it, but that isn’t what I fear the most.”  
  
“Mostly the shifting?” Yunho asked quickly, catching something about Jaejoong’s manner—something warmer and familiar. “You aren’t angry with me right now. When did that change?”  
  
Jaejoong smiled at his much-relieved mate. “I realized it on the planet today. I was having fun giving you hell, but it was just how we are. I found myself just wanting to reach out and touch you.”  
  
“Then why didn’t you?” Yunho asked, taking a step closer to Jaejoong.  
  
Jaejoong quickly took a step back away from Yunho. “Because, Yunho, don’t you realize…that Changmin…having Changmin will only speed up our doom.”  
  
“Our doom,” Yunho repeated sadly as he was reminded of their shared fate. The fact that he and Jaejoong would die young and Jaejoong would send a young Changmin back in time in a last effort attempt to save their son’s life was not something Yunho liked to think about.  
  
“We are doomed. We don’t get a happy ending. Changmin’s birth only brings us that much closer to the end of our lives. The fact that we have timeless love is comforting, but we won’t remember any of this life.”  
  
This time Yunho stepped forward, not letting Jaejoong avoid him as he grabbed the other man gently by the shoulders, forcing him to look him in the eye. “Then we can’t waste time being angry or hurtful to each other. I refuse to accept that we are doomed, but if we are I don’t want to spend a moment of it apart from you.”  
  
Jaejoong stepped into Yunho’s embrace, pressing his face against the other man’s chest, rejoicing in the power of the bond that he had deprived himself of for so long. “I’m so sorry. I just don’t want this to ever end. I don’t want us to die.”  
  
“I don’t want that either,” Yunho told Jaejoong, embracing him tightly, causing Jaejoong to wince.  
  
Yunho pulled away and studied Jaejoong, who looked miserable. “What’s wrong?”  
  
Jaejoong’s breathing increased as he clutched on to Yunho. “I’m hurting. I need to lie down.”  
  
Yunho quickly turned toward the master bedroom, helping Jaejoong along. “Hurting? What did I do?”  
  
“The second stage of shifting is when the body actually undergoes the physical changes. I was trying to meditate earlier, trying my best to postpone it, but now that we have reconnected…it won’t let me. I need to fall asleep. Changing is never easy when you are awake,” Jaejoong told Yunho as the other man led him to the bed and sat him down.  
  
Yunho pushed Jaejoong back on the bed and lifted his feet up on the bed, and watched as Jaejoong curled up on his side. “So you are going to change into your Joong form, now?”  
  
“Yes, but it won’t happen as quickly as it did when I first assumed this form. The Joong form is much more complicated. It has been known to take days with some. I am probably just growing some of my female organs now,” Jaejoong explained. “The pain should ease up in a little bit. I just need to rest.”  
  
Yunho stared down at Jaejoong helplessly. “What should I do?”  
  
“You can hold me.”  
  
Yunho climbed into bed and wrapped himself around his mate and pulled him snug against his body, “Nothing, I’d rather do.”  
  
Jaejoong grabbed Yunho’s hand and pulled it up to his mouth and kissed it. “I think that might be a blatant lie, but soon.”  
  
Yunho couldn’t stop from laughing as he breathed in the scent of Jaejoong, “Now, I was trying to be all-”  
  
Yunho groaned as the sound of his insignia chirping filled the air. He reluctantly pulled his hand away from Jaejoong and tapped his insignia. “Captain, here.”  
  
“Captain,” Lieutenant Yesung’s voice suddenly broke out from Yunho’s insignia. “Ensign Junsu appears to be in distress.”  
  
“Clarify, Lieutenant,” Yunho ordered as he sat up in bed.  
  
“Sir, he is flying like a crazy person, and he won’t answer our hails,” Yesung answered.  
  
Yunho looked down at Jaejoong and cringed guiltily. Jaejoong just shook his head, closed his eyes, and told Yunho, “Go.”  
  
Yunho bent down quickly and gave Jaejoong a quick kiss on the cheek, and then climbed out of bed. “I’ll be right there,” Yunho told Yesung as he hurried from the room on his way to the bridge.  
  
******************  
  
“Do you think he’s drunk?” a mystified Ensign Horvejkul, who was Eunhyuk’s relief, asked as he watched the main screen.  
  
Lieutenant Yesung walked up behind him and asked, “But where would he have obtained alcohol?”  
  
“Perhaps he found some while on shore leave?” Ensign Minho suggested from the science station as he sat staring at the main screen, baffled. It was a well-known fact aboard the ship that Ensign Junsu was their best pilot by far.  
  
Ensign SungGyu from the helmsman chair watched as the small spaceship stopped then started again, spun, and jerked in the space in front of them. “You don’t think he’s having a seizure do you?”  
  
Yunho walked onto the bridge and his gaze immediately took in the sight on the main screen. “What the hell is he doing?”  
  
“No, idea…it’s like he forgot how to fly it,” Yesung told the captain.  
  
“And he still won’t answer our hails?” Yunho confirmed as he walked up beside Lieutenant Yesung.  
  
“No,” Ensign Minho answered.  
  
“Place a tractor beam on the ship and beam Ensign Junsu directly to sickbay,” Yunho ordered. “I will be in sickbay, and have Lieutenant Sungmin meet me there. Lieutenant Yesung, you have the bridge once again.”  
  
“Aye, Sir,” Yesung replied, and Yunho headed off the bridge and to sickbay.  
  
**************  
  
“I am going to kill somebody!” Yunho heard Ensign Junsu declare loudly as he entered sickbay.  
  
“What? Why? What is going on with you? My sensors say you are completely fine…except for a severe case of motion sickness,” Dr. Cho told the very disgruntled looking ensign.  
  
“Your sensors be damned, I’m pissed! This is not funny! I could have died,” Ensign Junsu told Dr. Cho as Yunho entered the room.  
  
“Ensign,” Yunho chastised as he walked up to the bed.  
  
Ensign Junsu turned to look at Yunho as if he had gone mad. “Ensign? When did I get demoted?”  
  
“What?” Dr. Cho and Yunho asked at the same.  
  
“Umm…the last time I checked I was a commander. Also I was in a very…a very nice place when I got beamed into that primitive wreck! When I find out who is behind this, the environmental controls to their quarters will never work right again!”  
  
“Yoochun…” Yunho said pausing, knowing the familiar bitching of his oldest friend anywhere. “You are Yoochun.”  
  
“Huh?” Dr. Cho asked, dumbfounded.  
  
“Who did you think I was?” Commander Yoochun demanded.  
  
Dr. Cho looked back and forth from Yunho to the body of Ensign Junsu, and answered, “I though you were Ensign Junsu…since you are Ensign Junsu.”  
  
Yoochun arched his eyebrows at Dr. Cho and asked, “Have you gone mad, Doctor?”  
  
Yunho looked around the room. “We need a mirror. Is there a mirror in here?”  
  
“Of course, Heechul is never far from one,” Dr. Cho said as he went to grab one.  
  
The man on the exam bed asked, “Why do we need a mirror?”  
  
“Because you are in Ensign Junsu’s body,” Yunho informed Commander Yoochun, not knowing how it was possible, but knowing it was true.  
  
“Although that is my greatest wish in life, sadly I’m not,” Yoochun told Yunho with a perverted grin that had Yunho frowning.  
  
“Here,” Dr. Cho said, handing Yoochun a mirror.  
  
Yoochun stared at the mirror. Yoochun’s mouth was moving, but no words were making it out as he stared at his reflection.  
  
“Captain, what is going on?” Dr. Cho demanded. “The sensors say he is fine.”  
  
“I was called to the bridge when the crew reported that Junsu, who was flight testing ships today, suddenly started flying like a manic,” Yunho explained.  
  
Yoochun still just stared at the mirror with wide eyes and a slack jaw.  
  
“What am I doing in sickbay?” the body of Eunhyuk asked as he entered sickbay with Sungmin at his side.  
  
Yunho turned toward the ensign and asked, “Ensign Junsu?”  
  
“Yes, Captain!” Junsu said with relief. “I was flying the ship, and then suddenly I was in Eunhyuk’s body getting chewed out by Sungmin.”  
  
Sungmin looked at the body of Eunhyuk in shock. “So he really is Junsu?”  
  
“I think so… Although I have no idea why or how,” the captain explained.  
  
“Eunhyuk, you…you terrible friend! I want my body back,” Junsu cried to the man in his body.  
  
“That’s not Eunhyuk,” Dr. Cho told Junsu. “That is Commander Yoochun.”  
  
“What!” Junsu gasped horrified. “He can’t be in my body! He’ll molest me!”  
  
Yoochun put the mirror down and told Junsu, “I had nothing to do with this. I could have killed myself flying that piece of junk. Heck, I couldn’t even recognize half the controls…okay not any of them. I’m lucky I’m still alive.”  
  
“So if the person in Junsu’s body is Commander Yoochun, and the person in Eunhyuk’s body is Junsu…does that mean Eunhyuk is in Commander Yoochun’s body?” Sungmin asked, trying to make sense of the situation.  
  
“That would be my guess,” Yunho told Sungmin and turned to Yoochun. “Where were you before the switch? Is it possible Eunhyuk doesn’t know?”  
  
Yoochun smirked. “Oh, you are going to have to send security after him. If I know Eunhyuk, and I do, he is enjoying himself too much to care.”  
  
“Why do you say that?” Dr. Cho asked in dread.  
  
Yoochun leaned back in bed, placing his hands behind his head. “Because I was doing what I always do when I can’t have what I really want,” Yoochun said giving Junsu a wink. “I fuck whatever I can. Eunhyuk is in my quarters fucking the rebel woman, Nesala. I’d bet my life on it.”  
  
**************  
  
“You violated that woman!” Sungmin hissed from across the table, aiming daggers at Eunhyuk with his eyes.  
  
“I did not!” Eunhyuk in Yoochun’s body declared. Security had showed up and gathered him up from Yoochun’s quarters and deposited him in the main conference room in sickbay after getting him dressed. “I didn’t know.”  
  
“How could you not know?” Ryeowook, who was sitting next Sungmin, asked.  
  
Eunhyuk shrugged guilty and explained, “I thought I lost some memories or something. I didn’t notice I wasn’t myself ‘till security arrived. I then got up and noticed that my penis had shrunk.”  
  
“Gawd,” Yunho groaned from the head of the conference table. Sungmin covered his mouth and fought to keep from laughing as Ryeowook just shook his head. Shindong, who was also at the meeting sitting beside Yoochun, didn’t bother to hide his laughter.  
  
“Hey, you aren’t that big,” Junsu, who was still resigning in Eunhyuk’s body, pointed out.  
  
“I’m bigger than him!” Eunhyuk insisted.  
  
“Well, he would already know that, wouldn’t he?” Junsu snapped back at his friend. “It isn’t like he hasn’t seen it before.”  
  
“Junsu…” Eunhyuk trailed off, unable to say more. Eunhyuk felt sickened when he realized Junsu must know about his and Yoochun’s night together. Eunhyuk could only imagine the things Sungmin had told Junsu while he had thought he was Eunhyuk.  
  
Yoochun, who had been plotting ways to destroy Eunhyuk, demanded of the captain, “Captain, is this line of talk really necessary?”  
  
Yunho cringed, still not used to Yoochun in Junsu’s body. “No, it isn’t. What did you three do?”  
  
“Nothing! I mean if I knew what I did, I’d go undo it,” Yoochun answered.  
  
Yunho tapped his fingers against the table and stated, “It happened while you were on shore leave. It always happens on shore leave.”  
  
Sungmin turned toward Shindong and asked, “Have you ever heard of anything like this occurring before?”  
  
Shindong, who was still laughing, shook his head.  
  
“What about Jaejoong?” Ryeowook asked. “He may be able to help.”  
  
“No,” Yunho said firmly. “Jaejoong is not feeling well.”  
  
“Does he need my assistance?” Ryeowook asked carefully. As chief medical officer, he was the only person on the ship that Yunho had confided Jaejoong’s condition to.  
  
Yunho shook his head. “He’s fine… We will talk about this later.”  
  
“Of course,” Ryeowook answered and then added, “All my tests show that they are in perfect shape…it’s just like their souls have switched bodies.”  
  
“That is very astute, Doctor,” Changmin said as he entered the conference room, holding the glowing pink crystal, with Kyuhyun walking closely behind him.  
  
“What are you doing, and what is that?” Yunho demanded of his son.  
  
Changmin and Kyuhyun took their normal seats next to Yunho. Changmin explained, “Ensign Eunhyuk bought this on Altanguerel. It is made of the same substance as my necklace.”  
  
“It really is made by the Joongs?” Shindong asked, surprised.  
  
“That I have yet to determine,” Changmin told them as he threw the crystal to Junsu, who easily caught it. The crystal immediately stopped glowing once Changmin released it. “The ships’ records say that at least nine crystals in total have been brought aboard the ship.”  
  
Yunho frowned and eyed his son skeptically. “And how did you get in the ship’s computer? You’ve been locked out.”  
  
“Ah, that is correct, but Commander Kyuhyun has not been and we were working on this hypothesis together.”  
  
“I should be angry, and not to mention slightly fearful for my ship, but instead I will ask, what did you find out?”  
  
“First I have a question,” Changmin told Yunho and turned his focus on Commander Yoochun, who was residing in Ensign Junsu’s body. “Did you buy these in a group?”  
  
“Yes, the man selling them would only sell them as a group of three. Ensign Junsu, Ensign Asshole, and I all bought one from a group,” Yoochun answered.  
  
Changmin arched his left eyebrow and asked, “I assume Ensign Eunhyuk is Ensign Asshole?”  
  
“You would be correct,” Yoochun confirmed.  
  
“Can we pretend for one minute that we are in an official Star Fleet briefing and behave accordingly?” Yunho asked with his firm, commanding voice.  
  
“Yes, Sir!” all the officers responded, and Shindong immediately stopped laughing.  
  
“For lack of a better word, three members of the crew have…exchanged souls. Although this might seem humorous to some, this is not something to take lightly. I’m now told that there are six more of these crystals that you believe to be responsible for the soul exchange on my ship.”  
  
“That would appear to be the sum of it,” Commander Cho told the captain.  
  
At Commander Cho’s words, Dr. Cho tensed and turned toward his husband. “And why are you here, Commander? I do not remember giving you permission to return to duty,” Ryeowook asked and then turned to Changmin and added, “Nor you for that matter.”  
  
“That’s an excellent question!” Yunho agreed.  
  
Kyuhyun had the decency to look guilty as he explained, “Changmin was in sickbay informing us of his successful attempt to heal himself when the crystal caught his attention. He was really interested in it, and needed access to a science lab.”  
  
“And I did not remove you from the list of active officers,” Yunho finished.  
  
Commander Kyuhyun nodded his head. “I thought it couldn’t hurt anything, and I didn’t mind keeping an eye on him.”  
  
“It’s fine, Commander, and since you can access the computer, you knew what was going on with the others,” Yunho confirmed.  
  
“Yes, and he did find out a few things,” Kyuhyun added.  
  
“Well, Changmin, what else do you know?” Yunho asked his son.  
  
“I know they are the same crystals as the ones in the necklace, they are grouped in threes, and I activated it by touching it,” Changmin informed them.  
  
“Thank you so much,” Yoochun grumbled.  
  
“It was not intentional,” Changmin quickly explained. “There is one person aboard this ship who might be able to tell us more…” Changmin paused as the door to the conference room opened and Jaejoong entered. “And that would be the person in question.”  
  
“Jaejoong, you should be in bed resting,” Yunho said full of worry as his mate walked up to him and, to the surprise of all in the room, sat down on the captain’s lap.  
  
Jaejoong wrapped his arms around Yunho’s neck, rested his head against Yunho’s shoulder, snuggling in close, and told him, “Too many worrisome feelings floating around the ship for me to sleep.”  
  
“What happened to behaving accordingly?” Yoochun said full of sarcasm as he peered at Jaejoong in Yunho’s lap. “I see that you two have made up.”  
  
Yunho glared at him and snapped, “Can you pretend to be well mannered like Ensign Junsu while in his body? I hate feeling so irritated towards him.”  
  
Yoochun just smirked.  
  
Changmin, who was studying his parents intently, stated, “I would assume Mom has progressed to the second stage of shifting.”  
  
Before Yunho could respond, Jaejoong sat up straight in his lap and looked at their son disapprovingly. “Changmin, what have I told you about calling me mom? I am your birth…” Jaejoong paused, reaching out to run his hands through Changmin’s hair. “Is your hair getting darker?”  
  
Changmin reached up and touched his hair immediately. “Why would it be getting darker?  
  
Jaejoong arched his left eyebrow and asked, “You haven’t been spending any more time with-”  
  
“No, I have not!” Changmin quickly answered, unable to hide his worry. “It is not getting darker.”  
  
“It is.”  
  
“It is not!”  
  
“I am your birth parent, I know when my son’s hair is getting darker!” Jaejoong informed him.  
  
“You two stop,” Yunho ordered and looked at his table of amused officers. “The crystal glowed when Changmin picked it up and…” Yunho prompted.  
  
“And that was approximately the same time Yoochun showed that while he is an excellent engineer he would never make it as a pilot,” Sungmin happily finished.  
  
“That damn ship was prehistoric! How was I supposed to fly it?” Yoochun declared defensively.  
  
“It glowed?” Jaejoong asked after pondering Sungmin’s words. “I have never known the cursed crystals to glow.”  
  
“Oh, shit,” Shindong mumbled as a memory returned to him. “On his ship, ZhouMi was bitching about the necklace glowing.”  
  
“That is not possible, or I have never heard of such a thing happening before,” Jaejoong replied reading Shindong’s mind.  
  
“Shindong please tell us all you know,” the captain asked Shindong, who suddenly looked very uneasy. “I know it must be difficult to talk about… If you can’t I will understand.”  
  
“No, I will tell you. You all know he made me into his pet, and during the days he would keep me with him I remember him bitching to his second in command and the creepy doctor that the necklace had betrayed him,” Shindong explained. “He said it had glowed, and it had made him see-” Shindong stopped abruptly and turned to look at Kyuhyun.  
  
“Go on,” Kyuhyun told him.  
  
“He said it made him see Kyuhyun’s nightmare. He kept insisting that it had betrayed him. He never put the necklace back on after that, and that was before he received your message, Captain. He still thought Kyuhyun was Changmin, and still he never put the necklace back on,” Shindong explained.  
  
Kyuhyun paled, his eyes fogged over, and he whispered in a horrified tone, “He called me…something…something he would have only known to call me if he had seen into my mind.”  
  
Jaejoong reached across the table suddenly and grabbed a startled Kyuhyun by the hand, forcing the human male to look at him. “And may those memories haunt him for all of his wretched life. I can’t think of a more suitable revenge. Well, I can but I have to catch the bastard first.”  
  
Kyuhyun’s eyes cleared and he nodded his head at Jaejoong as the Joong released his hand. Ryeowook was suddenly behind him, massaging Kyuhyun’s tense shoulders, and told his husband, “I think it’s time for you to leave.”  
  
“No, I’m fine,” Kyuhyun told him as he reached up to cover one of Ryeowook’s hands with his own.  
  
“The necklace worked in a way to torture ZhouMi. ZhouMi may be the worst humanity has to offer but he is still a human, so the necklace did this to a human. A crystal that has never glowed before in this galaxy, that anybody knows of, glows after Changmin touches it, and it causes humans to shift souls,” Sungmin stated. “What is going on?”  
  
“It’s like Changmin’s Joong blood activated it,” Junsu pointed out.  
  
Eunhyuk shook his head. “But Changmin was wearing the necklace, how did it know he was a Joong?”  
  
“The necklace does not block the fact that I am a Joong. It just blocks a Joong’s telepathic and empathic powers,” Changmin informed them. “Jaejoong was able to heal me when I wore the necklace.”  
  
Jaejoong stared at the crystal that was sitting on the table in front of Ensign Junsu. “These crystals were made to protect humans, but I think they were made to especially protect Earth humans.”  
  
“How can you be sure of that?” Shindong asked, alarmed.  
  
“I just feel it. I am not up on the ancient stories of the Joong because they never interested me. The archives on Joong might hold more information. These stones are found on multiple planets in this galaxy and never have I heard of them transferring souls. It’s more than transferring souls though; I can’t read Yoochun, Junsu, or Eunhyuk at all.”  
  
“You can’t?” Ryeowook asked, shocked at the sudden news.  
  
“No, it’s like they are empty shells,” Jaejoong answered. “And the cursed necklaces have been worn by powerful humans in this galaxy for centuries, and never have I heard of anything like this dream transference occurring. There are differences between Earth humans and humans from this galaxy, and the stones seem to be keyed into those differences.”  
  
Yunho, who had been listening intently, added, “There are differences between Earth humans and humans from this galaxy… There is one huge difference that I can think of.”  
  
Jaejoong turned to face his mate with a questioning look.  
  
Changmin answered for Yunho, “Earth humans and Joongs can breed and produce offspring.”  
  
“That’s nice and all… Believe me, nobody appreciates being special more than I do, but I’d like to get my own body back. I’m pretty damn sure Junsu is not going to leave me alone with this one,” Yoochun told them.  
  
“That should be easy,” Changmin answered.  
  
“Easy?” Junsu questioned.  
  
“From the tests I ran, and what extra knowledge we have gathered in this briefing, I believe it is best to use Yunho’s simplistic approach to solving problems,” the inactive science officer explained.  
  
“Changmin,” Yunho warned.  
  
“I believe the crystals were perhaps a way to avoid Joong detection. When I touched the crystal, I activated it, displacing the three’s consciousness. Or perhaps my presence in the room activated it and my touching it was a mere coincidence—how I hate that word—but I doubt a Joong would willingly touch such a crystal. Although I was drawn to it… But I lack the hatred for the crystals that Mom exhibits. I do not think of the crystals as evil, and I want to keep the necklace forever, and I-”  
  
“Changmin, don’t get distracted,” Yunho interrupted as soon as he noticed his son beginning to ramble off course.  
  
“I believe if Mom and I remove ourselves from the ship and you three exchange crystals, you should return to normal,” Changmin finished quickly.  
  
“Just exchange the crystals?” Junsu asked, unable to believe that the answer could be so simple.  
  
“Let me clarify it for you in the simplest of terms; Junsu, make sure you have the crystal you bought on Altanguerel; Eunhyuk, take the one on the table; Yoochun, the other one you bought. The stones must go with your souls, not your bodies. Once you are back in your body you can reclaim your stones. It’s actually very simple. I might be wrong, which is highly unlikely, but I am reasonably positive the stones were used to avoid Joong detection, not for permanent body exchange,” Changmin explained.  
  
“Well, I hope it’s that simple. After you three return to normal, I want the stones locked away, and you,” Yunho said, turning to face his son, “are never to touch them again, no matter how fascinating they are.”  
  
“But I still do not understand how exactly they were activated or the importance of three,” Changmin explained.  
  
Yunho began to get up from his seat, gently sliding Jaejoong from his lap as he stood. “Changmin, we will revisit this conversation later. Right now you, Jaejoong and I are going to beam down to the planet. Sungmin, you are in charge of the exchange and locking all nine of the crystals up.”  
  
“Yes, Sir,” Sungmin answered.


	5. Timeless Love

“Stop gawking at me,” Junsu whined. Junsu was resting underneath a very old tree. The old tree was one of many in what was a long abandoned orchard on Altanguerel. A day had passed and the souls had been easily transferred back to their rightful bodies, as easily as Changmin had predicated.  
  
Changmin, who was sitting beside him, apologized, “I’m sorry, but your thoughts are so loud.”  
  
“Can you read my thoughts?” Junsu asked, panicking as he sat up and stared at Changmin, who was necklace free.  
  
Changmin shook his head and explained, “It is hard for me to read thoughts, unless Mom sends them directly to me. I can’t tell what you are thinking. It’s like a loud, undistinguishable roar coming from your head. I believe in a little time I will be able to distinguish some of your thoughts.”  
  
“But don’t…that isn’t very nice.”  
  
“I doubt you have any thoughts that I could not easily surmise.”  
  
“Did you just insult me?” Junsu asked with a big frown on his face. He reached his arm up to a low branch and pulled off what appeared to be a purple peach. “You know you gave me brain damage. You should be nice to me.”  
  
“It was repaired.”  
  
“Still, you should be nice,” Junsu insisted as he laid back down on the ground and took a big bite out of the piece of fruit. “I have had enough of people treating me like elephant dung.”  
  
Changmin’s eyebrows arched up and he asked, “Elephant dung?”  
  
“Yeah,” Junsu confirmed. When he thought of what Eunhyuk had done, and then kept from him, he was filled with anger and hurt. He would not forgive Eunhyuk easily.  
  
Changmin’s eyes widened as he picked up a word from Junsu’s mind. “Eunhyuk? Did Eunhyuk do something?”  
  
“No!”  
  
“You are lying,” Changmin stated, delighted with his new found skill. “Your feelings are as transparent as your thoughts, and much easier to differentiate. Did he do something to you when your consciousnesses were exchanged yesterday?”  
  
“No, he did it before the soul switching. If it weren’t for the soul switching I wouldn’t know how terrible he and Yoochun are,” Junsu explained, tossing his fruit away, his appetite suddenly gone.  
  
“Sex?” Changmin asked. The look on Junsu’s face let Changmin know he was correct. Changmin smiled, very pleased with himself for picking up another thought from Junsu’s mind.  
  
“I hate sex! I am never going to have sex! Sex is the root of all evil. I’m going to be like you for the rest of my life. Asexual.”  
  
Changmin sighed. “Unfortunately sex might be in my future. I might not be able to fight against the primitive urge Joongs have to bond. I’m quite devastated by this knowledge.”  
  
Junsu sat up suddenly and declared, “We should bond!”  
  
Changmin, who had been enjoying prying into Junsu’s mind, scooted backwards quickly. “Why would you say that?”  
  
Junsu threw his hands up. “Think about it. It makes perfect sense. If we were bonded, we would be hopelessly devoted to each other—like your parents.”  
  
“Why would I want to be like that, and with you of all people?” Changmin asked, alarmed by the sudden change in topic.  
  
Junsu pointed to Yunho and Jaejoong, who were underneath another tree in the near distance. Yunho was sitting up, and Jaejoong was lying down with his head resting in Yunho’s lap as Yunho fed him fruit. “If we were bonded with each other, then we can forget about mean people who are not worthy of my—our feelings,” Junsu explained as he turned to stare underneath another tree, where Yoochun sat with Kyuhyun and Heechul.  
  
Junsu’s feelings of sadness, disappointment, and shame washed over Changmin. “I understand your concerns, but I’m not the answer.”  
  
Junsu nodded his head, understanding the truth of Changmin’s words. “Maybe someday I will find somebody else…somebody great.”  
  
“Changmin! Did you dye your hair?” Sulli exclaimed as she quickly approached them. Sulli had been the first to beam down with her cousin Minho, and they had quickly taken off to investigate the surrounding land.  
  
“No,” Changmin answered, quickly reaching up and touching his hair.  
  
Sulli was all smiles as she sat down by Changmin and told him, “It looks darker.”  
  
“It does,” Ensign Minho agreed as he sat on the other side of Sulli.  
  
“I have been spending a lot of time on the planet; perhaps the sun is affecting the color,” Changmin quickly reasoned.  
  
“Doesn’t the sun usually make your hair lighter?” Junsu asked.  
  
“The affects of the sun rays on this planet could do the opposite,” Changmin quickly pointed out.  
  
Minho shook his head and corrected, “It is highly unlikely that the properties of the-”  
  
“Ensign Choi,” Changmin quickly interrupted.  
  
Minho took the hint and quickly added, “I mean it could happen…I mean anything is possible.”  
  
“Exactly,” Changmin confirmed. “Was there any evidence of flying vermin?”  
  
Minho, who had sat his tricorder down between him and Sulli, answered, “No signs of flying vermin.”  
  
“I think it’s so nice that so many people volunteered to come down here to help you with your telepathy,” Sulli told them as she looked around at the others sitting under the trees.  
  
“There are only six people,” Changmin pointed out. “My parents do not count.”  
  
Junsu, who had collapsed back on the ground, added, “Six people cared enough to risk brain damage for you. As somebody who has had it before, I think we are very good friends to have.”  
  
“Or kinda stupid,” Minho added.  
  
Changmin nodded his head. “True, although I know your IQ, Ensign Choi, is well above average.”  
  
“I must be a good friend then,” Minho told him.  
  
“You must be,” Changmin said, unable to keep from smiling at Minho, who was his favorite in the science department. Changmin was sad to discover that Minho and Sulli had minds that were heavily shielded. He heard no roar in Sulli’s presence—she was the more guarded of the two. Although Changmin could feel Sulli’s warm presence, her thoughts were tightly guarded.  
  
Sulli was staring starry-eyed at Yunho and Jaejoong under the tree. “Your parents are so beautiful together. It’s as if they were destined to be together always.”  
  
“They do have a timeless love,” Changmin offered.  
  
Sulli’s eyes lit up even more and asked full of wonder, “What do you mean a timeless love?”  
  
“The Guardian of Time, who I have yet to meet,” Changmin said with bitterness, “took them on a tour of their past lives. They have spent many lifetimes loving each other.”  
  
Sulli placed her hand over her heart and proclaimed, “Isn’t that the most romantic thing ever? I love true love!”  
  
Minho nudged his cousin gently, and said with pretended dread, “Here comes Sulli, the hopeless romantic.”  
  
Sulli nudged Minho back. “I’m not a romantic anymore.”  
  
Minho reached up and gently tousled her hair, and informed her, “You will always be a romantic. Nothing can ever change that.”  
  
Sulli sighed and looked back to the couple. “Perhaps, but I do not seek it for myself; but seeing it in others…does make my heart swell.”  
  
Changmin, who was watching Sulli watch his parents, asked something that had been bothering him for days, “Sulli, what is your ideal man?”  
  
Sulli broke her gaze away from Changmin’s parents and sneered. “None!”  
  
Junsu lifted a leg up to kick Changmin for asking such a question to the poor girl, but Changmin quickly caught Junsu by the foot. “Sulli, I realize my questions might seem strange but please indulge me. It is not my intent to offend, but before you came to this galaxy, what would you have said your ideal man was like then?”  
  
“Lieutenant,” Minho warned.  
  
“No, it is okay,” Sulli said, looking at Changmin curiously. She hesitated for only a moment before she answered, “Once on a trip with my parents we visited Gurrin 5 and the gymnasts there were so handsome. Not only do they have amazing control over their bodies, they are poets and musicians. I used to daydream about marrying one when I was younger. They are also great peace lovers, and they would understand the ways of a diplomat. I think I would have done well to marry a gymnast from Gurrin 5.”  
  
Relief flooded Changmin, because it would be very difficult to imagine anybody more different than himself than a gymnastic from Gurrin 5. He had not bonded with her. Changmin smiled sincerely at Sulli, let go of Junsu’s foot, reached out and clasped her hand, and told her in a much relieved voice, “Sulli, you are my good friend.”  
  
Sulli laughed and squeezed Changmin’s hand back. “And you are my good friend, Changmin.”  
  
  
******************  
  
Jaejoong winced as he sat up to watch Changmin and Sulli with great interest.  
  
Yunho reached out and threaded a hand through Jaejoong’s hair that looked as if it had gray streaks running through it. “You said yourself that friendship is a powerful human bond.”  
  
Jaejoong nodded his head. “It is but…I just wish I could be sure that’s all it is.”  
  
“I hope it’s just friendship.”  
  
“Really? Not ready for your little boy to like girls?” Jaejoong teased as he laid back down, turning on his side and resting his head on Yunho’s thigh.  
  
“Not that little girl,” Yunho answered as he gazed at Changmin and Sulli with sorrow. “What if he does vanish when he’s conceived? I think she has lost enough for one lifetime.”  
  
“You may be right,” Jaejoong whispered, shutting his eyes as Yunho continued to thread his hands through his hair. “My hair is getting a lot attention from you today.”  
  
“I’m fascinated by the gray.”  
  
Jaejoong rolled on his back, looked up at Yunho, and quickly corrected his mate, “  
There isn’t any gray—my hair is turning blond!”  
  
“I just know when you finally fell asleep last night you had black hair, and when you woke up this morning you had lots of hair that appears to be gray. I think I know the real reason you were so against shifting,” Yunho joked with his vain mate.  
  
“I also lost weight while I was sleeping…most of that muscle and bone. Unlike Changmin, I’m much frailer in my Joong form,” Jaejoong reminded Yunho. It had not been a peaceful night. Jaejoong’s body had punished him for resisting the shifting for so long, and although Yunho’s presence had provided him with some comfort, falling asleep during the painful shifting process had proven very difficult.  
  
Yunho looked down at Jaejoong, not bothering to hide his worry. “You want to go back to bed? Changmin’s doing great. I think you need to sleep.”  
  
“No, we can’t leave him.”  
  
“You have been watching him like a hawk, and not once have you had to intervene. I will stay with him. Maybe you will sleep better without me,” Yunho suggested to his mate. Yunho hated to part with his mate, but he knew his presence did not encourage sleeping.  
  
“Maybe…not that you were bothering me, I missed being near you. And you were on your best behavior, not once did you try to ravish me.”  
  
“Well, you know the fact that you were in excruciating pain kinda turned me off. I think you need to sleep…alone.”  
  
“You might be right, I do tend to focus on you,” Jaejoong reasoned. “But if I can’t sleep, I want you with me.”  
  
“I will beam back to the ship with you, tuck you in, and then I will return to Changmin. If you can’t sleep I will return to your side as soon Changmin feels confident enough to leave,” Yunho told Jaejoong as he caught sight of Heechul approaching. “Oh, here comes trouble.”  
  
Heechul walked up to them, eyeing the miserable looking Jaejoong, and told him bluntly, “I don’t mean this cruelly but you look like shit.”  
  
Jaejoong did not move his head from Yunho’s lap as he looked up at Heechul and said drily, “Well, as long as you don’t mean it cruelly.”  
  
Heechul knelt down, suddenly looking hopeful. “So I’m guessing you won’t make it to the Halloween party tonight.”  
  
“No,” Jaejoong bemoaned. “It was my crafty plan to get Yunho to dress up like the hot Captain Gil from our past life, but now I have to miss it. So not fair. Yunho, I was going to dress up as your hot little cabin boy.’  
  
“My cabin boy?” Yunho said, his eyes lighting up at the thought. “If you had said that before, I might not have been so reluctant to play dress up in the first place.”  
  
Jaejoong sighed sadly, “And now I have to miss it.”  
  
Heechul batted his eyelashes at Yunho, but directed his comment at Jaejoong, “Don’t you worry, I will enjoy him for you.”  
  
“I’m sorry, but I won’t be attending any party tonight,” Yunho informed Heechul.  
  
Heechul instantly barked, “What do you mean you aren’t going? You have to go! You are the captain!”  
  
“I am not the captain of parties!”  
  
Heechul fumed as he stood towering over the two of them. “Captain, you are coming to that party even if I have to drag you there myself. Don’t think I won’t! If Changmin can go so can you!”  
  
“Changmin is going to the party?” Yunho asked, taken aback. Yunho’s jaw dropped open his shock was so great.  
  
Jaejoong reached a hand up and closed Yunho’s jaw shut. “Changmin is different now. I think it’s good that he is going. He needs to create new experiences. You should also go and dress up! Hopefully I’ll be asleep, but if I’m not, you have to come show me what you look like afterwards.”  
  
“Yunho, listen to the mother of your children,” Heechul told Yunho, delighted that Yunho might be talked into going.  
  
Jaejoong sat up quickly, wincing in pain, and glared hatefully at Heechul. “One child! And how many times do I have to tell you I am not Changmin’s mother. I’m his birth parent!”  
  
“Yes, yes, so you keep saying, but let’s disregard your mommy issues for the moment and focus on something else. I have an important question for you. How do we know exactly that Changmin is an only child? Couldn’t he just be the youngest? One of many.” Heechul asked with feigned innocence.  
  
Jaejoong paled at the mere thought. “Shut up! That isn’t even funny! Why would you say such a thing…or think it? You…you…a poor man’s excuse for a fem-”  
  
“Shhh, don’t get so worked up,” Yunho said, interrupting Jaejoong’s tirade, pulling Jaejoong closer to him, kissing his cheek.  
  
“Did I bring up a sensitive subject?” Heechul asked with a grin on his face that was reminiscent of the Cheshire Cat.  
  
“Bye Heechul,” Yunho ordered, annoyed at Heechul for purposely riling Jaejoong up when his mate was most obviously not feeling well.  
  
“Yunho don’t be cranky. It’s an honest question. One you should be asking yourself,” Heechul admonished the captain.  
  
“Bye Heechul,” Yunho repeated.  
  
Heechul, who had no intention of leaving just yet, sighed and told Yunho, “I forgive you for your rudeness and denseness, Captain. I won’t hold it against you. Although the prince is my date for the party, don’t you worry, I will still save a dance for you.”  
  
“He wasn’t worried,” Jaejoong spat back at Heechul.  
  
**********************  
  
“Although I am not surprised to find Commander Kyuhyun here, I am rather surprised to find you here, Commander Yoochun,” Changmin said as he approached the two commanders, who sat under a tree together, watching Heechul with amusement as he harassed Yunho and Jaejoong.  
  
Yoochun looked up at Changmin and answered—not bothering to lie, “Kangin and I flipped a coin over it. We are Yunho’s oldest friends, so one of us had to go. I lost.”  
  
“How unfortunate,” Changmin told him as he sat down between the two commanders.  
  
Yoochun agreed, “Indeed. If he had the ship’s best interests at heart, he would have come instead. I mean let’s be honest, he’s an ensign assigned to security and I’m the chief engineer. I don’t mean to sound arrogant, but I’m a little more important to the ship.”  
  
“Snob,” Kyuhyun said under his breath, making sure Yoochun could hear him.  
  
“It’s the truth,” Yoochun insisted.  
  
“It doesn’t matter, because all of us are fine,” Kyuhyun told them. “Changmin, you are mastering your mental powers like you have always mastered everything in your life.”  
  
Changmin could not keep from beaming at Kyuhyun. “That is all thanks to you. I can not imagine…I don’t want to think about what would have happened if ZhouMi had gotten-”  
  
“Don’t,” Kyuhyun interrupted.  
  
Yoochun sensing a moment happening between the two of them stood up and informed them, “Now that the Choi cousins have gotten up to go gather berries and twigs again, or whatever those two do, I have a very long apology I need to give Junsu.”  
  
Changmin turned his focus from Kyuhyun to Yoochun. “Be nice to him.”  
  
“I plan on being sickeningly nice to him, don’t worry. I’m in the wrong here, and I’m man enough to admit it,” Yoochun answered as he headed off in the direction of Junsu.  
  
Kyuhyun watched as Yoochun approached Ensign Junsu, who immediately picked up a piece of fruit and threw it at the chief engineer, causing Kyuhyun to laugh. “I don’t think Junsu cares to hear his apology.”  
  
Changmin was focusing on Kyuhyun’s mind and his feelings. Kyuhyun’s mind was not as loud as Junsu’s but it was not as closed as the Choi cousins. Changmin was shocked to find that Kyuhyun was not overwhelmed with crippling pain…not as far as he could sense. “Kyuhyun…you seem well.”  
  
Kyuhyun turned back to face Changmin. “Do I?”  
  
“I am not an expert. I only have experience with feeling Yunho and Mom’s emotions, and Mom only lets me sense what he wants me to sense, but you seem…strong.”  
  
Kyuhyun nodded his head. “At first, I had this fear that it would be too much, but after a week of just hiding away from everybody and everything, except for Ryeowook…it’s strangely better. It’s like so much of the pain is just a blur for me now. Not that I have forgotten anything, it just doesn’t weigh on me. Not like I thought it would. I don’t know how to describe it properly, but I am just going to take it as a blessing.”  
  
At Kyuhyun’s words, Changmin turned his head to look at Jaejoong. Jaejoong, who was now standing with Yunho, turned his head to stare back at his son. Changmin knew instantly what Jaejoong had done.  
  
 _“Do you wish I hadn’t?”_ Jaejoong asked his son telepathically as Yunho dealt with a demanding Heechul, who was flinging his arms up in the air.  
  
“I’m glad,” Changmin told Jaejoong out loud.  
  
Kyuhyun who thought Changmin had spoken to him, answered, “So am I. I mean it wasn’t the worst thing that had ever happened to me, but it was bad enough. I guess I’m just stronger than I thought.”  
  
 _“He is very strong, but why waste such strength on that vile ZhouMi? I did not completely rid him of his memories…he still needs time,”_ Jaejoong told his son telepathically.  
  
Changmin looked back at Kyuhyun and couldn’t keep from smiling. “Very strong.”  
  
“I hope so. I kinda think, after thinking Ryeowook was dead, nothing could ever compare to that pain.”  
  
Changmin could not keep from grinning. Although he had more control over his emotions, he did not attempt to control them now. “I still find it difficult to believe that you and Ryeowook are married, considering how you started out.”  
  
Kyuhyun winced. “Don’t remind me.”  
  
“I must because through your relationship with Ryeowook I found friendship with you. I am very grateful. I can never repay the debt I owe you.”  
  
Kyuhyun laughed nervously and told Changmin, “You are mushy right now.”  
  
“I am,” Changmin agreed.  
  
“Hey,” Yunho said, walking up to them with the necklace in his hand. “Jaejoong isn’t feeling well so I am going to take him back to the ship, and then I will be right back. Changmin, do you want to stay down here or go back with us?”  
  
Changmin looked up at them and could tell that Jaejoong was in pain by the way he held himself. “If I stay, do I have to wear the necklace?”  
  
“Yes,” Jaejoong answered. “You can only have the necklace off if one of us is with you or nearby. Yunho’s shielding is strong enough to resist you, as was proven yesterday, but I am not willing to trust you alone with the others yet.”  
  
Kyuhyun reached out and patted Changmin on the back. “You are doing great. I bet you are free of the necklace in no time.”  
  
Changmin turned to face Kyuhyun, horrified at the thought. “I never want to be free of it. I wish to always have it near me, even though Mom wants to destroy it. I can’t-”  
  
“You can keep it,” Jaejoong interrupted to tell Changmin. “Although I hate the necklaces, I understand why you do not. It is safe.”  
  
Wonderful joy came spilling out of Changmin at knowing the necklace that could protect others from him, and protect him from the emotions of others, would not be lost to him. He jumped to his feet and pulled Jaejoong away from Yunho to embrace him tightly. “Thank you so much! For everything!”  
  
“You are welcome,” Jaejoong whispered, unable to say more. He had always known from the first moment he had laid eyes on Changmin that the younger Jung was his son, but only in the last couple of weeks did he truly start to feel it. Knowing something and feeling it were two entirely different concepts. He was acutely aware of the difference as he stood there with his son, embracing him tightly and being flooded with his feelings of gratitude—gratitude for sparing his friend pain, gratitude for guiding him during a very trying period, and for providing him with a gift that made him feel safe. But it was not only gratitude; there was something more…like the beginnings of love emanating from his son. Jaejoong hugged his son back tightly. He now knew exactly why Yunho was so fiercely protective of Changmin, and he felt that same fierce need to protect their son. Not because he knew he was his son, but because he loved his son.  
  
Heechul slithered up to Yunho, who was watching his son and mate hug with wide-eyed amazement, absolute love, and a homogenous sense of relief. “Look at that mommy and baby moment, isn’t it so moving? Are you going to start crying, Captain?”  
  
Yunho swallowed back his emotions, and denied, “No.”  
  
Heechul reached up and gently tugged Yunho’s hair. “Liar.”  
  
Changmin pulled away from Jaejoong, looking apologetic. “I’m very sorry.”  
  
“No, don’t be,” Jaejoong quickly told him. “I didn’t mind…I liked it.”  
  
“Oh, good then,” Changmin nervously told Jaejoong and then looked down to the ground, avoiding his Joong parent’s gaze.  
  
Heechul peered closely at Yunho’s eyes. “I can see tears forming.”  
  
Yunho pushed Heechul away and walked over to Changmin. Changmin, who was suddenly overcome with feelings of embarrassment, was inspecting the ground intensely. “You are just full of surprises, aren’t you,” Yunho told his son as he slipped the necklace over Changmin’s head.  
  
“The grass here is quite interesting,” Changmin muttered, mortified at his own display of affection.  
  
“It’s fascinating,” Kyuhyun, who was now standing next to Changmin and unable to hide his huge grin, told Changmin.  
  
Yunho pulled an emotional Jaejoong close to him and hit his insignia. “Two to beam up.”  
  
As soon as Yunho and Jaejoong were transported away, Heechul walked up between Changmin and Kyuhyun, placing a hand on each of their shoulders, announcing, “It’s time to talk costumes, boys.”  
  
  
  
************  
  
“Wow, you guys did an awesome job,” Junsu told Donghae as he walked into Ten Forward. The decorated room already had dozens of crewmembers in it, and all of them were dressed up in costumes. Refreshments and appetizers covered the tables. The dance floor was open, and music from different worlds took turns playing in the background.  
  
Donghae, who was dressed as Charlie Chaplin, smiled proudly. “Thanks. Once Sungmin thought of including Heechul, it was a breeze. It’s like he can totally use his genius when he wants to.”  
  
“I haven’t been in here since—it looks amazing.”  
  
Donghae nodded his head, knowing exactly what Junsu meant. “Maybe someday it can be opened again. By the way, who are you supposed to be?” Donghae asked. Junsu was dressed in red, decorative clothing from Earth’s ancient past, and he was also wearing a long, gray wig.  
  
“Mozart, Earth’s greatest musician,” Junsu explained.  
  
“Cool.”  
  
“I thought so,” Junsu agreed, frowning as he watched Eunhyuk walking toward them. “I have to go,” Junsu said, hurrying off, eager to avoid his oldest friend.  
  
“Good job, Brussels Sprouts,” Donghae told his best friend as the other man walked up to him, looking extremely guilty.  
  
“I know… I know I’m a horrible friend, but I’m a Bean Sprout for your information.”  
  
“Forgive me, Your Vegetable Highness,” Donghae smarted back to Eunhyuk. “Don’t start anything with Junsu. I want this party to go off without a hitch. Do you hear me? It’s time something went smoothly on this ship.”  
  
“I won’t start anything. All I will do is grovel at his feet whenever the opportunity presents itself,” Eunhyuk promised.  
  
“Good!” Donghae declared. “You two have….” Donghae paused. “Wow, Sungmin…damn.”  
  
Eunhyuk turned to look at his other best friend that had just walked in with Prince Siwon. Eunhyuk struggled to find the words. “Wh…wh…why did he dress like that?”  
  
Donghae grabbed a drink from a nearby table and tossed it back and answered, “To confuse straight men everywhere.”  
  
*********  
  
The captain and Yoochun were in the transporter room overseeing the departure of the rebel women personally. Once the women were gone, the ship would be free of its obligations to the rebels, and it could begin the search for Lieutenant SooYoung.  
  
Yunho had given the rebels his official parting words and was eager to get them off of his ship. Yunho was secretly patting himself on the back for making Siwon the ship’s official liaison. He had handled the women like a pro and now they were happily leaving the ship.  
  
The rebel woman named Nesala stepped off the transporter platform and made her way toward Commander Yoochun and whispered, “I will especially miss you. Last night started out a little lackluster, but boy did it end with a bang! Before security hauled you away, I was really enjoying myself.”  
  
Yunho used every bit of his discipline not to start laughing like a mad man after overhearing them. Yoochun’s eyes darkened and he told her in a cold, detached voice, “I’m flattered. I wasn’t the least bit inspired, so I’m glad that I could make it pleasurable for you at least.”  
  
The woman looked mortified, unaware of the offense she had given, and hurried back to the transporter platform.  
  
Yunho took mercy on the woman and ordered, “Ensign Jonghyun, energize.” Once the women were gone, Yunho told the ensign, “You are dismissed, go enjoy the party.”  
  
“Yes Sir, thank you, Sir,” the ensign told him and hurried off.  
  
Once they were alone, Yunho walked to the wall panel and pulled up the ship-wide reports for a quick review, but couldn’t keep from telling Yoochun, “You are mean.”  
  
Yoochun, who was still rankled by the woman’s comment, agreed, “Yes, and don’t you forget it.”  
  
Yunho ignored Yoochun and smiled as another piece of the puzzle fell into place. “Yong has decided to name his ship the Dragon, and he has also decided to join the Rebellion.”  
  
“And this makes you happy?”  
  
“Very happy,” Yunho confirmed. “It’s like everything is starting to go right for once.”  
  
“Jaejoong loves you again, and all is right in the universe,” Yoochun said, rolling his eyes.  
  
“That’s right. I just wish he felt better.”  
  
Yoochun laughed, and agreed, “Oh, I bet you do. The next stage is the ‘let’s make babies’ stage, isn’t it?”  
  
Yunho blushed slightly. He hated that the whole ship seemed to know that Jaejoong was shifting now, thanks to Changmin’s not so accidental slip ups. “Hey, don’t judge. His hormones were about to drive me insane in the worst way imaginable, and now I hope they drive me insane in the best way imaginable. And then…we can finally get back to normal. Normal would be nice.”  
  
“How normal can you be with a baby Changmin? I can just imagine an infant Changmin screaming all the time, demanding you feed him.”  
  
“Just because Jaejoong is shifting doesn’t mean he is going to get pregnant.”  
  
“Hey, don’t tell me that. I have money riding on the conception happening this week.”  
  
“Crewmembers are gambling on this?”  
  
“Yep, we got a nice gambling pool going.”  
  
Yunho grimaced and asked, “And dare I ask who started the pool?”  
  
“Your one and only son…Well, the only son we know about,” Yoochun answered, loving the flabbergasted look on Yunho’s face. “Cheer up. We have to get dressed. We have a party to get to. If we fail to show up, Heechul will have both of us by our balls.”  
  
  
***************  
  
“So you are supposed to be Prince Charming?” Sungmin asked his date as they entered the room.  
  
Siwon, whose eyes were glued to his date, cleared his throat and explained, “Heechul insisted. Apparently I’m some character from an Earth child’s fairy tale.”  
  
“That would be correct, and I have to agree with Heechul, you make a perfect Prince Charming,” Sungmin told Siwon, loving the reaction his outfit was having on the man.  
  
“I must ask…this costume you have on…was it done…” Siwon, whose usual smoothness was gone, paused searching for the right words.  
  
“Done to drive you crazy? Yes, it was. How’s it working?” Sungmin asked as he twirled around in the knee length white dress he wore. Sungmin was dressed as a historically famous blonde bombshell from Earth’s past.  
  
Siwon examined Sungmin from head to toe. “It’s very effective.”  
  
Sungmin smiled confidently and coyly told Siwon, “Remember we are just dating…Don’t get your hopes up.”  
  
*************************************  
  
“Are you a Vulcan?” Sulli asked Changmin as she approached him. She was wearing a simple blue and white dress. Her cousin Minho, who was beside her, was dressed up as a candlestick.  
  
Changmin, who was dressed in an old fashion Star Fleet uniform and wearing pointy ears, explained to Sulli, “Just not any Vulcan, but Spock. He was a brilliant scientist, and he was also a hybrid.”  
  
“Excellent choice,” Minho told his commanding officer as he picked up a sweet from a nearby table. “I guess Heechul didn’t dress you.”  
  
“He attempted to, but I skillfully avoided him,” Changmin informed Minho. “You did not escape, I see.”  
  
Minho shook his head sadly. “No.”  
  
“I like that you are the candlestick,” Sulli told her cousin. “If I have to be Belle, then I’m glad you are my friend the candlestick.”  
  
“Heechul dressed you as Belle?” Changmin asked.  
  
“Yes, but only the plain version of Belle,” Sulli answered with a pout. “There can only be one princess at this party. No gorgeous gown for me.”  
  
“So what did Heechul have planned for you?” Minho asked Changmin.  
  
Changmin reluctantly admitted, “The Beast. You see, Heechul is under the impression that Sulli and I have bonded in the Joong way. He is completely mistaken, but he refuses to see it.”  
  
“Why does he think that?” Minho asked, taken aback by Changmin words.  
  
Sulli laughed, not the least bit surprised and explained, “Because he is Heechul. He thinks I’m going to marry Changmin, but I’m never going to marry anybody. Ever. Men disgust me…no offense.”  
  
“None taken,” Changmin replied happily.  
  
“But why does he think this?” Minho repeated. “There has to be a reason.”  
  
“Have you met Heechul?” Sulli asked. “I adore him, and he’s like my wonderful fairy godmother, but he doesn’t need a reason. Even if I didn’t hate the thought of being with somebody…I would never like Changmin—no offense.”  
  
Changmin could not hide his smile. “None taken.”  
  
“SooYoung loves him. I am not that kind of cousin,” Sulli explained further.  
  
“Sulli! When we find her she is going to kill you,” a very surprised Minho declared, completely shocked that Sulli just spilled SooYoung’s biggest secret, and to Changmin of all people.  
  
“Sulli blabbed all of this to me when she thought I was dying,” Changmin informed Minho. “Although I do not return your sister’s feelings, it is a high honor that a person as highly intelligent as your sister shows such an interest in me.”  
  
“See! He’s totally cool with it,” Sulli told Minho as she grabbed his arm. “Come dance with me.”  
  
Changmin smiled as he watched Sulli drag Minho out to the dance floor.  
  
“It’s good to see her so happy, isn’t it?” Ryeowook asked as he came up from behind Changmin with Kyuhyun beside him.  
  
“It is indeed,” Changmin told the doctor.  
  
Ryeowook studied Changmin and asked, “How does it feel having the necklace off? The room is full of people.”  
  
“It was slightly disquieting at first, but I feel like I am adapting well. I have a slight headache, but nothing that requires a pharmacological intervention,” Changmin explained.  
  
“You have it with you though,” Ryeowook confirmed, slightly uneasy. Ryeowook would have rather waited a bit longer before unleashing Changmin’s unguarded mind on the ship, but Jaejoong had insisted it was safe.  
  
Changmin nodded his head and pulled the necklace from his pocket. “I have it with me, but nobody appears to be in any discomfort. Yunho will soon be here, and Mom said I no longer need to be dependent on it.”  
  
“That’s good; you have come a long way in a short while.”  
  
Changmin nodded his head. “I did not do it alone.”  
  
“No,” Ryeowook agreed. “Jaejoong was an enormous help to you.”  
  
“He was. I could not have done it without him,” Changmin agreed. Changmin then turned to Kyuhyun and stated, “I see you did not bend to Heechul’s will either.”  
  
Kyuhyun, who was only wearing his uniform, smiled triumphantly. “Nope, but to be fair I really wasn’t going to come, but Ryeowook dragged me here.”  
  
Ryeowook swatted his husband. “I did not drag you. You were as curious as I was. I do regret not getting more dressed up now though. Everybody looks amazing.”  
  
“Except for you two,” Heechul snapped, after sneaking up behind the three of them, causing the Chos to jump. He was dressed in a spectacular blue dress that looked like it had come straight out of a fairy tale. “I see the horrid Chos did not even bother to dress up! It’s a mockery of all my hard work! How dare you two insult me so blatantly!”  
  
“Heechul, we would never insult you. I did dress up!” Ryeowook exclaimed, pointing to the old fashioned stethoscope around his neck and his long white lab coat. “I am an old country doctor.”  
  
“Whatever,” Heechul seethed. “It’s probably something you regularly wear on that backwards planet you sprung from, but at least you made an attempt… Kyuhyun, you didn’t even dress up!”  
  
“I did!” Kyuhyun declared, pulling back the sleeve of his uniform to show one band-aid. “I’m his patient.”  
  
Heechul’s eyes appeared to turn red, causing Ryeowook to quickly grab Kyuhyun and pull him out to the dance floor. “Darling, let’s dance…now!”  
  
Changmin, sensing that Heechul was about to explode, attempted a trick he had seen others use countless times before with the insane doctor, “Heechul, you look beautiful. Your dress is breathtaking.”  
  
The anger in Heechul’s eyes vanished immediately. “Oh, this?” Heechul said, patting down his dress. “This is nothing…I mean, if you call Cinderella’s dress nothing.”  
  
“Cinderella?” Changmin asked, pretending the name meant nothing to him.  
  
“Yes, only the greatest princess of all,” Heechul explained as he searched the crowd for his prince charming and found him plastered next to Sungmin as they danced. “It seems my Prince Charming has chosen another,” Heechul said, unable to hide his disappointment.  
  
The hint of sadness in Heechul’s voice made Changmin extremely uncomfortable. He didn’t know what to tell the explosive personality. It was rare that Heechul acted truly hurt. Changmin knew Heechul would not handle his hurt feelings well, and no doubt rage would soon replace any depressing feelings he was now experiencing.  
  
“Then you will just have to settle for me,” Yunho told Heechul as he approached with Yoochun at his side.  
  
Siwon was instantly forgotten as Heechul took in the sight of Yunho. “Oh, Jaejoong was correct, you look strikingly handsome as a 19th century sea captain. I had no idea!”  
  
“Nothing compares to you, Princess,” Yoochun told Heechul as he lifted Heechul’s hand up to his mouth and kissed it. Changmin sighed in relief, knowing that Yoochun and Yunho were experts at handling Heechul.  
  
“Yoochun! You are a Joseon era prince! I love the both of you!” Heechul proclaimed, taking turns hugging them both. “You both look great in royal blue!”  
  
“Let’s show them how to dance, Princess,” Yunho said, extending his hand for Heechul.  
  
Heechul beamed brightly and took Yunho’s hand. “Who needs the prince of nothing, when they can dance with the real man in charge? Let’s show them how it’s done,” Heechul declared with his old unwavering confidence.  
  
“Dancing used to be a hobby of mine,” Yunho told Heechul as they left for the dance floor.  
  
Changmin couldn’t keep from smiling. “You two have perfect timing. I could feel an explosion about to erupt.”  
  
“We have our moments,” Yoochun told Changmin as Junsu walked up to them.  
  
“Well, the captain most certainly does,” Junsu agreed. After throwing dozens of fresh and rotten fruit at Yoochun yesterday, Junsu had finally allowed the other man to apologize. He didn’t understand Yoochun, but he did believe he was sorry.  
  
“You want to dance with me, Ensign?” Yoochun asked.  
  
Junsu answered, “No, I don’t.”  
  
“Just know the offer is out there if you change your mind.”  
  
“Just remember I already rejected the offer.”  
  
“You do know men can dance together in the 24th century, and it doesn’t imply anything?”  
  
Junsu nodded his head. “I do know this. If Changmin wants to dance with me, I’d willingly accept.”  
  
“I would rather not,” Changmin quickly informed them. “I have no desire to dance.”  
  
“Come on, Changmin, you can dance with me. At least once,” Sulli pleaded as she and Minho returned from the dance floor.  
  
“I’d rather not.”  
  
“Boo! I guess I will just have to look at all the amazing costumes instead,” Sulli said as she looked around the room.  
  
“I do believe Princess Heechul wins this round,” Minho said. “The dress is very impressive.”  
  
Yoochun, who was watching Sungmin with admiration, added, “I don’t know. Sungmin looks damn good.”  
  
“Too good,” Junsu agreed uncomfortably.  
  
“Ensign Jang is adorable as a Norbert cub. I like Eunhyuk’s bean sprouts, too,” Sulli said of the ensign, who was doing some weird dance with Donghae and Shindong in the middle of the dance floor.  
  
“Is Shindong a sea pirate?” Minho asked.  
  
Changmin nodded his head. “Yes, and it’s a good choice for him.”  
  
“But I have to agree, Princess Heechul wins the award for best costume,” Sulli said as she watched Heechul and Yunho dancing. Heechul was clearly enjoying having all of the captain’s attention. Heechul was most certainly Cinderella at the ball. Sulli couldn’t help but be happy for the delusional doctor who had taken such excellent care of her. Sulli was surprised when Yunho abruptly stopped dancing. A look of absolute love and adoration appeared on Yunho’s face, and it was not directed at his dance partner.  
  
“Umm…I’m not so sure about that. I think Changmin’s mom might win the award,” Junsu said in awe. “It’s like he’s a whole different person.”  
  
They all turned their heads and gasped as Jaejoong walked onto the dance floor, eyes locked with Yunho’s. The dancing stopped as the crew laid eyes on Jaejoong in his true form for the first time. Although Changmin was ethereal in his Joong form, his beauty did not compare to the person who had given birth to him. None aboard the ship were prepared for the beauty they now encountered; beauty so strikingly breathtaking and perfect that it filled all their senses.  
  
Jaejoong was dressed entirely in white. He wore a lacey, white cotton shirt that was fashioned from the days of Earth’s ancient renaissance period. It fit loosely, one side hanging off his shoulder, and it hung just below his waist, accentuating a body that was not limited to the attributes of just one gender. He also wore tight white pants that were laced tightly up his legs. His skin was a creamy, white perfection that appeared to be as soft as snow. Flawless flaxen hair brushed his shoulders, drawing attention to his eyes—his eyes were the same crystal blue perfection as his son’s.  
  
Jaejoong strolled up to Yunho, completely rejuvenated. Once his body had reached the final phase of shifting, his Joong healing abilities had taken over, restoring his health and replenishing his strength. The great Joong powers that he had at times tried to suppress for the comfort of the humans around him emanated off of him, refusing to be controlled.  
  
Heechul stepped away, feeling the electricity in the air, and knowing better to intrude on the moment. Yunho’s smile grew as Jaejoong stepped closer. Memories of that day so long ago when he had gone to answer a cry for help filled his mind. As Jaejoong came to a stop in front of him, Yunho reached out a hand and cupped Jaejoong’s cheek. “Not exactly the same, but I can still see the girl I saved all those months ago.”  
  
Jaejoong reached up, his hand covering Yunho’s. “Not just a girl, but both genders in this form.”  
  
“Yes, I do remember your words, but I do not remember you being so exquisite.”  
  
Jaejoong moved closer to Yunho and placed both his arms around Yunho’s neck. “Perhaps it’s because your preference still lingers in this form, or is it the absence of the blood and gore?”  
  
A chill ran up Yunho’s spine as he was reminded of the condition of Jaejoong’s body when they had first met. The torture Jaejoong had received on the orders of the mad warlord… Yunho wrapped his arms around Jaejoong’s waist, pulling him closer and promised, “Never. Again.”  
  
“You will protect me?”  
  
“Always.”  
  
“And I will always protect you.”  
  
“Always?” Yunho teasingly questioned.  
  
“Forever…in all our life times.”  
  
“In all our life times,” Yunho confirmed as he bent down to kiss Jaejoong. Welcoming lips met his, and a song began to play.  
  
*************  
  
“Do you hear that?” Junsu asked as he turned away from the captain and Jaejoong to look around him. “Do you hear music?”  
  
Yoochun reached up and rubbed his ear. “It’s like it’s coming from inside my head.”  
  
“It’s beautiful,” Sulli said in awe, not taking her eyes off the couple on the dance floor.  
  
“It appears to be a telepathic song,” Changmin said, mystified by the song playing in his head.  
  
“Jaejoong has a very nice voice, although the experience of hearing it in my own head is quite unsettling,” Minho said from beside Sulli.  
  
“Junsu, is that you?” Yoochun questioned after hearing another familiar voice in the song.  
  
“It is me! I sound good!” Junsu said proudly, unable to keep from smiling. “I keep telling people I can sing.”  
  
“And that would be Yunho,” Yoochun laughed as he continued to listen to the song.  
  
“And now I hear Changmin,” Junsu declared, laughing at the horrified look that had appeared on Changmin’s face.  
  
“I do not sing!” Changmin denied.  
  
“Well, you are singing in my head and you sound beautiful!” Sulli said, completely delighted by the telepathic song. “It started when they kissed! It’s so romantic. I think Joongs are wonderful! Jaejoong is so amazing!”  
  
“And that would be me,” Yoochun said, unable to keep from smiling. “I must admit we sound pretty fucking amazing!”  
  
“You do!” Sulli and Minho both agreed.  
  
“This is highly illogical!” Changmin informed them all, folding his arms, and trying his best to look displeased.  
  
Junsu exclaimed, “It’s highly awesome!”  
  
***************  
  
Yunho broke away from the kiss and asked in wonderment, “What is this?”  
  
“What is what?” Jaejoong asked, his lips already missing his lover.  
  
“This song playing in my head.”  
  
“It’s a song of our timeless love,” Jaejoong answered as he slid his hands around Yunho’s waist and pulled him tightly to him.  
  
“What?”  
  
“There are some Joongs that can create telepathic songs while in Joong form. I’ve never heard of it being this easy though, but I’m very gifted. Kiss me.”  
  
“That you are,” Yunho quickly agreed as he bent down and kissed Jaejoong again, much to the other man’s enjoyment.  
  
 _“It is good to be appreciated,”_  Jaejoong told Yunho mentally as he deepened the kiss.  
  
 _“You are, but I intend to appreciate you even more.”_ Yunho pulled away from Jaejoong’s lips and started to kiss down his lover’s neck. Jaejoong moaned appreciatively and tilted his head back, exposing more of his neck.  
  
 _“No need for pheromones now.”_  
  
 _“Not with you,”_  Yunho agreed as his hand slide under the back of Jaejoong’s shirt.  
  
 _“Deny you for a few weeks and you become quite the exhibitionist.”_  
  
Yunho detached himself quickly from Jaejoong after taking in the other man’s words. Yunho tried to clear his senses and asked, “I can understand why Changmin would be in our song, but why Junsu and Yoochun?”  
  
Jaejoong frowned unhappily as Yunho tired to collect his senses, and shrugged. “I just broadcast the song, I don’t pick the vocalist. It probably has something to do with our countless lives, and the fact that those two have accompanied us on so many of our life journeys.”  
  
“Makes absolutely no sense to me, but for once I don’t care,” Yunho told Jaejoong. “I think it is beautiful, and it should just be enjoyed.”  
  
“Now that is the spirit,” Jaejoong told Yunho proudly, finding this side of Yunho refreshing. Jaejoong then took a step back and extended his hand to Yunho. “May I have this dance?”  
  
“I’d be honored,” Yunho told Jaejoong as he took the other man’s hand. Their bond worked its magic and their bodies moved as one, swaying perfectly in sync with each other as the song of their timeless love played on.  
  
“One dance, and then you are all mine…all mine. I have plans for you, My Love,” Jaejoong whispered in Yunho’s ears as they moved across the empty dance floor with every eye in the room glued to them. “You said you loved me best, and I intend to make you prove it—over, and over, and over again.”  
  
“Now that is a challenge I can get behind,” Yunho said, full of anticipation as he swept Jaejoong across the dance floor.


End file.
